Biomedical subjects

Martha Ann Bell

Publications and source records attributed to Martha Ann Bell.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Working memory and inhibitory control in early childhood: Contributions from physiology, temperament, and language.

This study examined the cognitive skills of working memory and inhibitory control (WMIC) in relation to physiological functioning, temperament, and language in early childhood. WMIC skills were assessed in twenty-five 4 1/2-year-old children using the day--night Stroop-like task and the yes--no task; each task required the child to remember two rules and to inhibit a dominant response. Electroencephalogram (EEG) and heart period (HP) were recorded during baseline and WMIC tasks. An increase in 6- to 9-Hz EEG power from baseline to task was found for the medial frontal region. In addition, a decrease in HP (i.e., an increase in heart rate) was found from baseline to task. Associations were found between performance on the WMIC tasks and scales of the Children's Behavioral Questionnaire (CBQ) related to the effortful control of behavior. The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III (PPVT-III) distinguished between high and low WMIC performance. Results of a discriminant function analysis indicated that physiology, temperament, and language were able to correctly predict 90% of WMIC performance.

Arousal↗

PubMed2003

Two- and three-dimensional mental rotation tasks lead to different parietal laterality for men and women.

Thirty-two college students (16 male, 16 female) had EEG recorded during computerized two- and three-dimensional mental rotation tasks. The simple two-dimensional mental rotation task was associated with more left parietal than right parietal activation in men and more right parietal than left parietal activation in women. The complex three-dimensional mental rotation task was associated with greater right parietal than left parietal activation in both men and women. Men performed better than women on the three-dimensional task and there were no differences between men and women on the two-dimensional task. It was concluded that men and women may be using different neurological strategies on two- and three-dimensional mental rotation tasks.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Cognition and affective style: Individual differences in brain electrical activity during spatial and verbal tasks.

Relations between brain electrical activity and performance on two cognitive tasks were examined in a normal population selected to be high on self-reported measures of Positive or Negative Affectivity. Twenty-five right-handed women, from an original pool of 308 college undergraduates, were the participants. EEG was recorded during baseline and during psychometrically matched spatial and verbal tasks. As predicted, participants who were high in Positive Affectivity performed equally well on the verbal and spatial tasks, while participants who were high in Negative Affectivity had spatial scores that were lower than their verbal scores. There were no group differences in baseline EEG. Both groups exhibited left central activation (i.e., alpha suppression) during the verbal and spatial tasks. When EEG data were analyzed separately for the group high in Positive Affectivity, there was evidence of parietal activation for the spatial task relative to the verbal task. The EEG data for the group high in Negative Affectivity had comparable EEG power values during verbal and spatial tasks at parietal scalp locations. These data suggest that, within a selected normal population, differences in affective style may interact with cognitive performance and with the brain electrical activity associated with that performance.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

The effects of age and sex on mental rotation performance, verbal performance, and brain electrical activity.

This study examined the effects of age and sex on mental rotation performance, verbal performance, and brain-wave activity. Thirty-two 8-year-olds (16 boys) and 32 college students (16 men) had EEG recorded at baseline and while performing four computerized tasks: a two-dimensional (2D) gingerbread man mental rotation, a 2D alphanumeric mental rotation, of three-dimensional (3D) basketball player mental rotation, and lexical decision making. Additionally, participants completed a paper- and pencil water level task and an oral verbal fluency task. On the 2D alphanumeric and 3D basketball player mental rotation tasks, men performed better than boys, but the performance of women and girls did not differ. On the water level task, men performed better than women whereas there was no difference between boys and girls. No sex differences were found on the 2D gingerbread man mental rotation, lexical decision-making, and verbal fluency tasks. EEG analyses indicated that men exhibited left posterior temporal activation during the 2D alphanumeric task and that men and boys both exhibited greater left parietal activation than women and girls during the 2D gingerbread man task. On the 3D basketball player mental rotation task, all participants exhibited greater activation of the right parietal area than the left parietal area. These data give insight into the brain activity and cognitive development changes that occur between childhood and adulthood.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Power changes in infant EEG frequency bands during a spatial working memory task.

Developmental psychophysiologists working with infants have no commonly accepted frequency definitions of EEG waves or rhythms. The purpose of this study was to investigate the task-related power changes in three infant EEG frequency bands during the performance of a spatial working memory task by 8-month-old infants. EEG data were divided into three frequency bands: 3-5 Hz, 6-9 Hz, and 10-12 Hz. Although all three frequency bands showed some level of discrimination of baseline from task and among different processing stages of cognitive activity, only the 6-9 Hz band consistently exhibited these capabilities and distinguished the correct from incorrect responses. These data may form the foundation for defining EEG frequency bands that are appropriate for use with infant research participants and for understanding the function of these frequencies during cognitive activity.

Electroencephalography↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Emotion and cognition: an intricately bound developmental process.

Regulatory aspects of development can best be understood by research that conceptualizes relations between cognition and emotion. The neural mechanisms associated with regulatory processes may be the same as those associated with higher order cognitive processes. Thus, from a developmental cognitive neuroscience perspective, emotion and cognition are dynamically linked and work together to process information and execute action. This article highlights the authors' recent efforts at integrating emotion regulation and cognitive processing during the first year of life by focusing on the methodological criteria outlined by Cole, Martin, and Dennis (this issue), and it discusses the idea that emotion and cognition are an intricately bound developmental process.

Child↗