Cognitive Ability, General Clinical Trial
Official title:
An Integrative System for Enhancing Fluid Intelligence (Gf) Through Human Cognitive Activity, Fitness, High-definition Transcranial Direct-current Brain Stimulation (HD-tDCS), and Nutritional Intervention
Adaptive reasoning and problem-solving are critical skills that allow for accurate decisions to be made based on varying levels of information. In many situations these decisions must be made and communicated under stressful, time-sensitive conditions. In such contexts, an ability to apply inductive and deductive reasoning to complex, ambiguous, and/or novel problems is critical. The objective of the INSIGHT project is to establish a comprehensive and rigorous brain training protocol to significantly improve adaptive reasoning and problem solving. We will examine a variety of interventions (cognitive training, physical fitness training, physiological stimulation, , and combinations thereof) to assess their ability to improve adaptive reasoning and problem solving abilities. Multimodal interventions are hypothesized to act synergistically to significantly enhance fluid intelligence (Gf) and underlying brain structure and function.
Recent innovations in cognitive neuroscience have advanced understanding of the
neurobiological foundations of fluid intelligence (Gf) and adaptive reasoning and problem
solving (ARP). Rather than engaging a single brain structure (e.g., prefrontal cortex) or
operating at a fixed level of performance throughout adulthood, emerging neuroscience
evidence indicates that Gf and ARP are mediated by a distributed neural system whose
functions can be significantly enhanced by specific types of interventions, including
cognitive training, high-definition transcranial direct-current brain stimulation (HD-tDCS),
and physical fitness training. The main objective of the INSIGHT project is to establish and
validate a comprehensive and rigorous brain training protocol that incorporates the best
available interventions for the enhancement of Gf and ARP.
The project was divided into two phases, with the first occurring in February -November 2014
and the second occurring February - December 2015. The two phases were similar in structure
and goals/hypotheses, but had several methodological differences in terms of interventions,
arms, and outcome measures. This document contains information pertinent to only the 2014
phase, which examined the relative contributions of physical fitness intervention,
video-game based training, and high-definition transcranial direct-current brain stimulation
(HD-tDCS) to the improvement of Gf/ARP, executive function, working memory, relational
memory, physical fitness level, and brain structure/function.
Arms/groups completed 1 week of testing to establish baseline measurements of cognitive
abilities, physical fitness, and brain structure/function. 16 weeks of various intervention
protocols. These protocols could include single or multiple intervention type(s) with
varying schedules. Three 70-min training sessions were completed per week, so all arms
completed 56 hours of training, total. Following completion of the intervention period was 1
week of post-assessment to measure changes in cognitive abilities, physical fitness, and
brain structure/function.
Technical Justification for Physical Fitness Intervention: The beneficial effects of
physical fitness on cognitive performance and brain health have been documented in many
studies. For example, this literature suggests that increased exercise leads to the birth of
new neurons in the hippocampus (a key brain region underlying Gf), increased connections
among neurons throughout the brain, the development of new vasculature structure, increased
production of neurotrophic proteins, enhanced learning and memory, and enhanced executive
control including attention and inhibition, working memory, mental flexibility, and action
monitoring. In particular, (1) exercise effects are largest for tasks that involve executive
control functions for working memory, planning, and problem solving - abilities that are
essential for Gf and ARP; and (2) aerobic exercise training, when combined with strength and
flexibility training, had a greater positive effect on cognition compared to exercise
training programs that included only aerobic components. Such findings provide important
justification for the physical activity intervention proposed here. Hence, the proposed
fitness intervention employs a combined aerobic/resistance training program to further
enhance the benefits of cognitive training on Gf and ARP.
Technical Justification for Video Game-Based Training: Training on five cognitive skills -
(1) processing speed, (2) attention, (3) working memory, (4) relational memory, and (5)
cognitive flexibility - has been shown to provide promising transfer results to Gf and other
relevant constructs. This training regime is the basis for the design of the Mind Frontiers
software platform. Mind Frontiers includes an integrated suite of mini-games that are
designed to train these five core cognitive skills. The mechanics, as abstractions of the
cognitive exercises, ensure that the scientific integrity and the training effect of the
exercises are preserved, but the exercises are implemented as games with motivational
features and adaptive difficulty.
Technical justification for HD-tDCS: It has been hypothesized that Gf and ARP are critically
dependent on a fronto-parietal brain network, and thus that bilateral, specific stimulation
of the frontal cortex with high definition transcranial direct current stimulation (HD-tDCS)
would have an excitatory effect on neurons within that network, making them more likely to
fire, and thereby enabling faster learning and facilitating transfer to Gf.
Technical Justification for Active Control: Change detection and visual search tasks were
selected as the active control tasks because previous work had indicated that training
low-level perceptual abilities did not transfer to Gf and ARP.
;
Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Double Blind (Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
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