Biomedical subjects

Deborah M Gunn

Publications and source records attributed to Deborah M Gunn.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Mapping the developmental constraints on working memory span performance.

This study investigated the constraints underlying developmental improvements in complex working memory span performance among 120 children of between 6 and 10 years of age. Independent measures of processing efficiency, storage capacity, rehearsal speed, and basic speed of processing were assessed to determine their contribution to age-related variance in complex span. Results showed that developmental improvements in complex span were driven by 2 age-related but separable factors: 1 associated with general speed of processing and 1 associated with storage ability. In addition, there was an age-related contribution shared between working memory, processing speed, and storage ability that was important for higher level cognition. These results pose a challenge for models of complex span performance that emphasize the importance of processing speed alone.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2003

The complexities of complex span: explaining individual differences in working memory in children and adults.

Two studies are presented that investigated the constraints underlying working memory performance in children and adults. In each case, independent measures of processing efficiency and storage capacity are assessed to determine their relative importance in predicting performance on complex span tasks,which measure working memory capacity. Results show that complex span performance was independently constrained by individual differences in domain-general processing efficiency and domain-specific storage capacity. Residual variance, which may reflect the ability to coordinate storage and processing, also predicted academic achievement. These results challenge the view that complex span taps a limited-capacity resource pool shared between processing and storage operations. Rather, they are consistent with a multiple-component model in which separate resource pools support the processing and storage functions of working memory.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Raven's matrices performance in Down syndrome: evidence of unusual errors.

The aim of this study was to investigate the types of errors produced by three participant groups (individuals with Down syndrome, with moderate learning disability, and typically developing children) whilst completing the Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices task. An analysis of error categories revealed that individuals with Down syndrome produced a significantly different pattern of errors to the comparison groups. This difference remained, though was less marked, when the groups were matched on overall task performance. Consequently, even when the groups were making the same number of errors, they were not making the same type of errors. An investigation of age-related error patterns revealed that there was a significant change in the types of errors made by typically developing individuals with age. However, no significant age-related change was found in the types of errors made by participants with Down syndrome. The analysis also provided evidence that individuals with Down syndrome were not producing error types appropriate for their chronological age, or for their overall level of task performance. Possible explanations for these differences in terms of problems of integration of perceptual information, reduced visual acuity, and a lax criterion for task completion in Down syndrome are considered.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The relationship between short-term memory and working memory: complex span made simple?

This experiment addresses the question of what makes a working memory measure a good predictor of higher-level abilities. Verbal and visuospatial processing episodes were interleaved with distinct verbal and visuospatial storage episodes to form four complex span tasks. Although these measures were reliable predictors of reading and mathematics ability in children, they were no more predictive of these abilities than corresponding simple span tasks involving storage alone. However, when individual differences in storage ability and processing capacity were controlled for, residual variance in complex span performance was related to academic ability in some cases. These findings indicate that complex span tasks are multiply determined, and that differences in task structure can dramatically influence the relative importance of these multiple constraints and the predictive power of a complex span measure.

Child↗