Background: Working memory (WM) abilities are frequently impaired in neurological disorders affecting fronto-parietal cortical/sub-cortical structures. WM deficits negatively influence interventional outcomes and everyday functioning. This study thus aimed at the following: (a) developing and standardizing an ecologically valid task for WM assessment (Ice Cream Test, ICT); (b) validating and norming a novel WM test (Digit Ordering Test, DOT), as well as providing updated norms for digit span (DS) tasks, in an Italian population sample; (c) introducing a novel scoring procedure for measuring WM. Methods: One-hundred and sixty-eight Italian healthy participants—73 male, 95 females; age: 48.4 ± 19.1 (18–86); education: 12.1 ± 4.8 (4–21)—underwent a thorough WM assessment—DOT, ICT, and both forward and backward DS tasks (FDS, BDS). The ICT requires participants to act as waiters who have to keep track of customers’ orders. For each task, WM and total (T) outcomes were computed, i.e., the number of elements in the longest sequence and that of recalled sequences, respectively. Norms were derived via the equivalent score (ES) method. Results: DS ratios (DSRs) were computed for both WM/S and T outcomes on raw DS measures (BDS divided by FDS). Age and education significantly predicted all WM tasks; sex affected FDS and DSR-T scores (males > females). WM measures were highly internally related. Discussion: The present work provides Italian practitioners with a normatively updated, multi-component, adaptive battery for WM assessment (WoMAB) as well as with novel outcomes which capture different WM facets—WM capacity and attentive monitoring abilities.

Pasotti, F., De Luca, G., Aiello, E., Gramegna, C., Di Gangi, M., Foderaro, G., et al. (2022). A multi-component, adaptive Working Memory Assessment Battery (WoMAB): validation and norms in an Italian population sample. NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES, 43(2), 985-992 [10.1007/s10072-021-05416-7].

A multi-component, adaptive Working Memory Assessment Battery (WoMAB): validation and norms in an Italian population sample

Aiello E. N.;Gramegna C.;Gallucci M.;
2022

Abstract

Background: Working memory (WM) abilities are frequently impaired in neurological disorders affecting fronto-parietal cortical/sub-cortical structures. WM deficits negatively influence interventional outcomes and everyday functioning. This study thus aimed at the following: (a) developing and standardizing an ecologically valid task for WM assessment (Ice Cream Test, ICT); (b) validating and norming a novel WM test (Digit Ordering Test, DOT), as well as providing updated norms for digit span (DS) tasks, in an Italian population sample; (c) introducing a novel scoring procedure for measuring WM. Methods: One-hundred and sixty-eight Italian healthy participants—73 male, 95 females; age: 48.4 ± 19.1 (18–86); education: 12.1 ± 4.8 (4–21)—underwent a thorough WM assessment—DOT, ICT, and both forward and backward DS tasks (FDS, BDS). The ICT requires participants to act as waiters who have to keep track of customers’ orders. For each task, WM and total (T) outcomes were computed, i.e., the number of elements in the longest sequence and that of recalled sequences, respectively. Norms were derived via the equivalent score (ES) method. Results: DS ratios (DSRs) were computed for both WM/S and T outcomes on raw DS measures (BDS divided by FDS). Age and education significantly predicted all WM tasks; sex affected FDS and DSR-T scores (males > females). WM measures were highly internally related. Discussion: The present work provides Italian practitioners with a normatively updated, multi-component, adaptive battery for WM assessment (WoMAB) as well as with novel outcomes which capture different WM facets—WM capacity and attentive monitoring abilities.
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Ecological validity; Executive functioning; Neuropsychological assessment; Normative data; Validation; Working memory;
English
29-giu-2021
2022
43
2
985
992
open
Pasotti, F., De Luca, G., Aiello, E., Gramegna, C., Di Gangi, M., Foderaro, G., et al. (2022). A multi-component, adaptive Working Memory Assessment Battery (WoMAB): validation and norms in an Italian population sample. NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES, 43(2), 985-992 [10.1007/s10072-021-05416-7].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10281/321600
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