• Journal of Audiology & Otology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.178-188
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• 2021

Background and Objectives: The influence of musical aptitude on cognitive test performance in musicians is a long-debated research question. Evidence points to the low performance of nonmusicians in visual and auditory cognitive tasks (working memory and attention) compared with musicians. This cannot be generalized to all nonmusicians, as a sub-group in this population can have innate musical abilities even without any formal musical training. The present study aimed to study the effect of musical aptitude on the working memory and selective attention. Subjects and Methods: Three groups of 20 individuals each (a total of 60 participants), including trained-musicians, nonmusicians with good musical aptitude, and nonmusicians with low musical aptitude, participated in the present study. Cognitive-based visual (Flanker's selective attention test) and auditory (working memory tests: backward digit span and operation span) tests were administered. Results: MANOVA (followed by ANOVA) revealed a benefit of musicianship and musical aptitude on backward digit span and Flanker's reaction time (p<0.05). Discriminant function analyses showed that the groups could be effectively (accuracy, 80%) segregated based on the backward digit span and Flanker's selective attention test. Trained musicians and nonmusicians with good musical aptitude were distinguished as one cluster and nonmusicians with low musical aptitude formed another cluster, hinting the role of musical aptitude in working memory and selective attention. Conclusions: Nonmusicians with good musical aptitude can have enhanced working memory and selective attention skills like musicians. Hence, caution is required when these individuals are included as controls in cognitive-based visual and auditory experiments.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.83-96
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• 2024

Purpose : This study was conducted to determine the effects of a brain spinning program on cognitive function, body composition, health related fitness and physical self-efficacy of children and adolescents. Methods : This study, 34 children and adolescents were selected and divided into two groups : the exercise group (n=16), which received a brain spinning program and the control group (n=16), which did not receive any exercise program. The program was conducted for 30 minutes three times a week for 4 weeks, and the cognitive function, body composition, health related fitness and physical self-efficacy were measured both before and after the program. Results : The exercise group, which received a brain spinning program showed a significant increase in short-term memory (p<.05) and working memory (p<.01), and muscle mass increased significantly only in the exercise group (p<.05). In addition, left grip strength increased in the exercise group (p<.01), and the maximum oxygen intake decreased significantly only in the control group (p<.05), and Sit-forward bend increased significantly only in the exercise group (p<.01). Physical self-efficacy significantly increased only in the exercise group (p<.05). Conclusion : In summary, short-term memory, cognitive efficiency, working memory, muscle mass, left grip strength, maximum oxygen intake, and left forward bending in children and adolescents significantly increased after the 4-week brain spinning program. However, the control group that was not provided with the 4-week brain spinning program showed a significant increase in body weight and a significant decrease in maximum oxygen intake. In conclusion, the 4-week brain spinning program has positive effects on short-term memory, cognitive function, muscle mass, muscle strength, cardiorespiratory endurance, flexibility, and physical self-efficacy.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.57-65
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• 2017

The current study explored how Korean-speaking children processed the multiple acoustic cues (VOT and f0) for the stop laryngeal contrast (/t'/, /t/, and /$t^h$/) and examined whether individual perceptual strategies could be related to a general cognitive ability performing executive functions (EF). 15 children (aged from 7 to 8) participated in the speech perception task identifying the three Korean laryngeal stops (3AFC) on listening to the auditory stimuli of C-/a/ with synthetically varying VOT and f0. They completed a series of EF tasks to measure working memory, inhibition, and cognitive shifting ability. The findings showed that children used the two cues in a highly correlated manner. While children utilized VOT consistently for the three laryngeal categories, their use of f0 was either reduced or enhanced depending on the phonetic categories. Importantly, the children's processing strategies of a f0 suppression for a tense-aspirated contrast were meaningfully associated with children's better cognitive abilities such as working memory, inhibition, and attentional shifting. As a preliminary experimental investigation, the current research demonstrated that listeners with inefficient processing strategies were poor at the EF skills, suggesting that cognitive skills might be responsible for developmental variations of processing sub-phonemic information for the linguistic contrast.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.707-717
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• 2015

Purpose: This study was to develop and verify the effects of the exercise-cognitive combined dual-task training program on cognitive function and depression of the elderly with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: A non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design was used. The participants were assigned into two groups: an experimental group receiving an exercise-cognitive combined dual-task (n=20) and a control group receiving a simple-task (n=18). After 8 weeks of intervention (2 days per week), the change in depression and cognitive functions were compared between the groups. Results: General cognitive function (t=-2.81, p=.011), frontal cognitive function (Z=-3.50, p<.001), attention/working memory function (U=-2.91, p=.004), depression (t=4.96, p<.001) of the experimental group were significantly increased than those of the control group. Conclusion: The findings of the study showed that an exercise-cognitive combined dual-task program for MCI was effective in improving general cognitive function, frontal and executive function, attention/working memory function, and reducing depression.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.24 no.10
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• pp.131-136
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• 2007

In this paper, we estimated the effects of different color stimulation on the cognitive function of human quantitatively. For the stimulations we used color lights with 6 color filters such as red, yellow, green, blue, violet and white. The experiment was performed in a soundproof chamber. 50 young male and female subjects were participated in the experiment. To find the appropriate color cognitive function, the endogenous visuospatial attention task(EVAT) and one back working memory task(OWMT) were performed. The reaction time and accuracy degree were measured. The results showed that the reaction time of EVAT was the fastest and the accuracy degree of attention task was the highest in green environment. The reaction time of OWMT was the fastest in yellow and the accuracy degree of memory task was the highest in blue. For physiological parameters, we measured electrocardiogram(ECG) and HRV spectrum analysis, HF/LF color environment. These results can be used as an indicator in the design of color environment and clinical applications.

• The Mathematical Education
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.19-41
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• 2013

What is the foundation of mathematical thinking? Is it logic based symbolic language system? or does it rely more on mental imagery and visuo-spatial abilities? What kind of neural changes happen if someone's mathematical abilities improve through practice? To answer these questions, basic cognitive processes including long term memory, working memory, visuo-spatial perception, number processes are considered through neuropsychological outcomes. Neuronal changes following development and practices are inspected and we can show there are neural networks critical for the mathematical thinking and development: prefrontal-anterior cingulate-parietal network. Through these inquiry, we can infer the answer to our question.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.31-44
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• 2019

This study intended to investigate the effects of the subtitle location on the decreased working memory abilities caused by aging. A junior group (average age: 26, SD: 3.06, N=27) and a senior group (average age: 61.69, SD=4.18, N=26) participated in this study and they all performed N-back tasks which measured the working memory ability of the participants and video subtitle recognition tasks that assessed the most effectively recognized subtitle locations in the video. The results of the N-back task revealed slower response times and low accuracy rates in the senior group in comparison to the junior group, suggesting lower working memory abilities in the senior group vis-à-vis the junior group. The deterioration of working memory due to aging also negatively influenced the 'left-bottom' subtitle location in the video subtitle recognition task and positively influenced the 'left-center' location of the screen. The deterioration of working memory ability did not affect other subtitle locations. By examining the positive or negative effects of the deterioration of working memory ability as a function of age on subtitle locations, the present study suggests that the selection of suitable subtitle locations taking into account the ages of video viewers would cause information to be more effectively displayed on screen.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.95-102
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• 2019

This study was to investigate the effect of eye movement and intentional finger movement on cognitive ability. Normal adult subjects were randomly divided into two groups: saccadic eye movement(SEM) and intentional finger movement(IFM). After 2 weeks of intervention, Digit span was used for short-term memory test and N-back was used for working memory test. As a result, the short-term memory of the IFM group increased significantly over time, and the follow-up test showed difference between group. The IFM group's the execution time, the error count and the accuracy rate of n-back item showed significant effects over time. The SEM group's the execution time and the accuracy of n-back item showed significant effects over time. In conclusion, the IFM method, which is a multiple stimulus that can activate the cerebral cortex more extensively than the single stimulus SEM, may be more useful as an intervention method of cognitive function improvement.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.303-306
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• 2017

Purpose: Gait variability is defined as the intrinsic fluctuations which occur during continuous gait cycles. Increased gait variability is closely associated with increased fall risk in older adults. This study investigated the influence of attention-demanding tasks on gait variability in elderly healthy adults. Methods: We recruited 15 healthy elderly adults in this study. All participants performed two cognitive tasks: a subtraction dual-task (SDT) and working memory dual-task (WMDT) during gait plus one normal gait. Using the $LEGSys^+$ system, we measured the coefficient of variation (CV %=$100{\times}$[standard deviation/mean]) for participants' stride time, stride length, and stride velocity. Results: SDT gait showed significant increment of stride time variability compared with usual gait (p<0.05), however, stride length and velocity variability did not difference between SDT gait and usual gait (p>0.05). WMDT gait showed significant increment of stride time and velocity variability compared with usual gait (p<0.05). In addition, stride time variability during WMDT gait also significantly increased compared with SDT gait (p<0.05). Conclusion: We reported that SDT and WMDT gait can induce the increment of the gait variability in elderly adults. We assume that attention demanding task based on working memory has the most influence on the interference between cognitive and gait function. Understanding the changes during dual task gait in older ages would be helpful for physical intervention strategies and improved risk assessment.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.302-306
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• 2011

Objectives : To investigate the cognitive functions of pediatric cancer patients and to test the hypotheses that the impairment of processing speed and working memory are more prevalent in children with medulloblastoma (MBL) compared to children with neuroblastoma (NBL). Methods : We gave the Korean version of the Wechsler Intelligent Scale for Children-III to 21 children with MBL and 24 children with NBL during outpatient follow-up after the treatment was completed. Results : Children with MBL showed below average performance across most of the sub-tests. The full scale IQ, verbal IQ, and performance IQ of children with MBL were significantly lower than those of children with NBL. There were significant differences between two groups in coding and Digit Span subtest scores. Children with MBL performed especially poorly in the coding subtest. Conclusion : These findings support previous reports of generally low IQ and the dysfunction of processing speed and working memory among children with MBL, a kind of central nervous system tumor. Further investigation is needed to determine how the deficit of processing speed and working memory affect neurocognitive development and general intelligent functions.