Papers by Mareike Altgassen
International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 2014
ABSTRACT The aims of the present study were to investigate relations between moral reasoning, exe... more ABSTRACT The aims of the present study were to investigate relations between moral reasoning, executive functioning and Theory of Mind in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) compared to typically developing children and to apply the dual aspect theory of Lind (1978, 2008) to moral reasoning in individuals with and without ASD. Overall, 21 children with ASD (age: M = 10·22, SD = 1·55) and 21 controls (age: M = 9·83, SD = 2·36) participated and completed the Moral Reasoning Test for children from Zierer (2006), which tests affective and cognitive aspects of moral reasoning. In addition, participants completed two Theory of Mind tasks, a working memory and an inhibition test. Correlational analyses revealed significant relations between cognitive moral reasoning and inhibitory control as well as between Theory of Mind and inhibition for the ASD group. Thus, inhibitory control, but not working memory and Theory of Mind, might be one key mechanism underlying moral reasoning, and possibly ToM development in children with ASD. Analyses of variance revealed no significant differences in cognitive and affective aspects of moral reasoning between individuals with ASD and typically developing children. Both groups did also not differ in Theory of Mind and executive functioning. Findings are discussed in light of the heterogeneous literature.
International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 2014
Handbook of Cognitive Aging: Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 2008
Research in developmental disabilities, 2014
This study examined, for the first time, the impact of implementation intentions on prospective m... more This study examined, for the first time, the impact of implementation intentions on prospective memory (PM) performance in adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and further explored the role of retrospective memory for PM in ASD. PM was assessed with Virtual Week, a computerized game simulating upcoming everyday-life tasks. Twenty-seven adults with ASD and 27 age- and ability-matched controls were included. Half of the participants were instructed to form implementation intentions (i.e., encoding PM tasks in form of if-then statements), while the rest received simple PM instructions. Results provide first tentative evidence for beneficial effects of implementation intentions and PM tasks with low demands on retrospective memory for adults with ASD's PM. Overall, results point to the importance of planning and retrospective memory for successful prospective remembering in ASD.
Journal of experimental child psychology, 2014
Research indicates ongoing development of prospective memory as well as theory of mind and execut... more Research indicates ongoing development of prospective memory as well as theory of mind and executive functions across late childhood and adolescence. However, so far the interplay of these processes has not been investigated. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to investigate whether theory of mind and executive control processes (specifically updating, switching, and inhibition) predict prospective memory development across adolescence. In total, 42 adolescents and 41 young adults participated in this study. Young adults outperformed adolescents on tasks of prospective memory, theory of mind, and executive functions. Switching and theory of mind predicted prospective memory performance in adolescents.
![Research paper thumbnail of [Learning in old age: The importance of self-initiated structuring]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/44832107/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 2003
The purpose of the present study was to assess the role of memory, inhibition efficiency and self... more The purpose of the present study was to assess the role of memory, inhibition efficiency and self-initiated structuring of learning material in predicting age-related effects in learning performance. 47 young ( M = 23.3; SD = 3.8) and 52 old adults ( M = 64.5; SD = 5.2) took part in the current study. Tests assessing memory span, inhibition efficiency and a recall test requiring the participants to structure their learning material were administered. The results reveal that most of the age-related variance in learning performance can be explained by inhibition efficiency, memory span and-particularly-by the quality of structuring learning material. Furthermore, the results indicate that in order to recall the content of categories it is important to remember the categories formed during the learning period. The study emphasizes the importance of teaching strategies for organizing learning material in the context of cognitive trainings for the elderly.
... Mike Martin1, Linda Clare2, Anne Mareike Altgassen3, Michelle H Cameron4 ... Graham 1997 Grah... more ... Mike Martin1, Linda Clare2, Anne Mareike Altgassen3, Michelle H Cameron4 ... Graham 1997 Graham JE, Rockwood K, Beattie BL, Eastwood R, Gauthier S, Tuokko H, McDowell I. Prevalence and severity of cognitive impairment with and without dementia in an elderly population ...
This article examines two issues: the role of gesture in the communication of spatial information... more This article examines two issues: the role of gesture in the communication of spatial information and the relation between communication and mental representation. Children (8-10 years) and adults walked through a space to learn the locations of six hidden toy animals and then explained the space to another person. In Study 1, older children and adults typically gestured when describing the space and rarely provided spatial information in speech without also providing the information in gesture. However, few 8-yearolds communicated spatial information in speech or gesture. Studies 2 and 3 showed that 8-year-olds did understand the spatial arrangement of the animals and could communicate spatial information if prompted to use their hands. Taken together, these results indicate that gesture is important for conveying spatial relations at all ages and, as such, provides us with a more complete picture of what children do and do not know about communicating spatial relations.
Restorative neurology and neuroscience, 2009
In most studies on plasticity using behavioural data, cognitive plasticity has been studied in th... more In most studies on plasticity using behavioural data, cognitive plasticity has been studied in the context of short-term interventions such as memory training. In order to systematically review the literature on memory training and summarize its effects for old healthy people and people with mild cognitive impairment on multiple functional domains, we conducted a meta-analysis of all published randomized controlled trials (RCT) between 1970 and 2007. Overall, 24 studies examining memory training effects in healthy and in mildly cognitively impaired old adults were identified and included in the analysis. Only memory trainings (e.g. memory skills training, imagery, method of loci) with cognitive outcome measures, duration of intervention with up to one year with at least a baseline and a post-intervention assessment reported, were included. Results demonstrate significant training effects for paired associate learning and immediate and delayed recall in healthy old adults and for imm...
Quarterly journal of experimental psychology (2006), 2015
Efficient intention formation might improve prospective memory by reducing the need for resource-... more Efficient intention formation might improve prospective memory by reducing the need for resource-demanding strategic processes during the delayed performance interval. The present study set out to test this assumption and provides the first empirical assessment of whether imagining a future action improves prospective memory performance equivalently at different stages of the adult lifespan. Thus, younger (n = 40) and older (n = 40) adults were asked to complete the Dresden Breakfast Task, which required them to prepare breakfast in accordance with a set of rules and time restrictions. All participants began by generating a plan for later enactment; however, after making this plan, half of the participants were required to imagine themselves completing the task in the future (future thinking condition), while the other half received standard instructions (control condition). As expected, overall younger adults outperformed older adults. Moreover, both older and younger adults benefi...
Developmental Psychology, 2014
This large-scale study examined the development of time-based prospective memory (PM) across chil... more This large-scale study examined the development of time-based prospective memory (PM) across childhood and the roles that working memory updating and time monitoring play in driving age effects in PM performance. One hundred and ninety-seven children aged 5 to 14 years completed a time-based PM task where working memory updating load was manipulated within individuals using a dual task design. Results revealed age-related increases in PM performance across childhood. Working memory updating load had a negative impact on PM performance and monitoring behavior in older children, but this effect was smaller in younger children. Moreover, the frequency as well as the pattern of time monitoring predicted children's PM performance. Our interpretation of these results is that processes involved in children's PM may show a qualitative shift over development from simple, nonstrategic monitoring behavior to more strategic monitoring based on internal temporal models that rely specifically on working memory updating resources. We discuss this interpretation with regard to possible trade-off effects in younger children as well as alternative accounts.
European Journal of Ageing, 2013
The present study aimed at investigating agerelated differences in prospective memory performance... more The present study aimed at investigating agerelated differences in prospective memory performance using a paradigm with high ecological validity and experimental control. Thirty old and 30 young adults completed the Dresden Breakfast task; a meal preparation task in the lab that comprises several subtasks including event-and time-based prospective memory tasks. Participants were required to plan how to perform the task. Results showed that young adults outperformed old adults: they completed more subtasks, showed better event-and time-based prospective memory performance and planning quality. In contrast, old adults adhered to their plans more closely than young adults. Further exploratory gender-specific analyses indicated that old women did not differ from young men in time-based prospective memory performance, general task performance and time monitoring in contrast to old men. Possibly, differences in experience in breakfast preparation might account for these differential findings.
Zeitschrift f�r Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 2003
Learning in old age: The importance of self-initiated structuring n Zusammenfassung Ziel der vorl... more Learning in old age: The importance of self-initiated structuring n Zusammenfassung Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war es, die Bedeutung von Gedächtnis, Inhibitionsleistung und selbstständiger Strukturierung des Lernmaterials für die Vorhersage von Alterseffekten in der Lernleistung zu untersuchen. Zur Überprüfung dieser Fragestellung bearbeiteten 47 junge (M = 23,3; SD = 3,8) und 52 alte Probanden (M = 64,5; SD = 5,2) Tests zur Erfassung der Gedächtnisspanne, der Inhibitionsleistung sowie einen Lerntest, im Rahmen dessen die Teilnehmenden ihr Lernmaterial selbstständig strukturieren mussten. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die altersbezogene Varianz in der Lernleistung durch die Inhibitionsfähigkeit, die Gedächtnisspanne sowie das Ausmaß der selbstständigen Strukturierung nahezu vollständig aufgeklärt werden konnte. Ferner weisen die Ergebnisse darauf hin, dass dem Erinnern der zuvor beim Enkodieren gebildeten Kategorien eine Schlüsselrolle für den Abruf des Kategorieninhalts zukommt. Die Studie deutet auf die Notwendigkeit der Vermittlung von Strategien zur Organisation von Lernmaterial im Rahmen von Trainingsprogrammen hin.
Schizophrenia Research, 2007
Although a number of studies have now shown that schizophrenia is associated with impaired memory... more Although a number of studies have now shown that schizophrenia is associated with impaired memory for future intentions (prospective memory), the degree and nature of the impairment remains to be clarified, as does the degree to which this impairment is secondary to deficits in other aspects of cognition. In the present study thirty participants with schizophrenia were compared with demographically matched controls on Virtual Week, a measure that closely represents the types of prospective memory tasks that actually occur in everyday life, and provides an opportunity to investigate the different sorts of prospective memory failures that occur. Participants with schizophrenia were significantly and comparably impaired on Virtual Week, irrespective of the specific prospective memory task demands. Importantly, after controlling for general cognitive functioning, executive functioning and retrospective memory, although the absolute magnitude of the deficit was reduced, significant impairment remained. These results suggest that individuals with schizophrenia experience generalized difficulties with prospective memory, and that whilst other cognitive deficits contribute to these difficulties, there is something unique to prospective remembering that is additionally disrupted in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research 95 (2007) 179 -185 www.elsevier.com/locate/schres ⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +61 2 9385 3936; fax: +61 2 9385 3641.
The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 2010
Cue saliency is known to influence prospective memory performance, whereby perceptually or concep... more Cue saliency is known to influence prospective memory performance, whereby perceptually or conceptually distinct cues facilitate remembering and attenuate adult age-related deficits. The present study investigated whether similar benefits for older adults are also seen for emotional valence. A total of 41 older and 41 younger adults performed a prospective memory task in which the emotional valence of the prospective memory cues was manipulated. Emotionally valenced cues increased prospective memory performance across both groups. Age deficits were only observed when neutral (but not positive or negative) prospective cues were presented. Findings are consistent with predictions that salient cues facilitate participants' prospective memory performance and reduce age-related differences, while extending the concept of saliency to include emotional valence.
Neuropsychologia, 2007
The current study investigated the involvement of all four components of . The episodic buffer: A... more The current study investigated the involvement of all four components of . The episodic buffer: A new component of working memory? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 4, 417-423] revised working memory model in deficits of planning accompanying Parkinson's disease (PD). PD resulted in poorer formulation and execution of plans, as measured by the Tower of London task. PD also reduced the efficiency of the episodic buffer and central executive components of working memory, but did not influence storage of verbal or visuospatial information. Planning deficits in PD were particularly linked to problems in integrating multimodal short-term information with long-term memory (episodic buffer). These results emphasize the importance of integrative and executive processing in cognitive problems in PD, rather than simple memory deficits.
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Papers by Mareike Altgassen