Changes in task performance and frontal cortex activation within and over sessions during the n-back task.

ABSTRACT: The n-back task is a popular paradigm for studying neurocognitive processing at varying working memory loads. Although much is known about the effects of load on behavior and neural activation during n-back performance, the temporal dynamics of such effects remain unclear. Here, we investigated the within- and between-session stability and consistency of task performance and frontal cortical activation during the n-back task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Forty healthy young adults performed the 1-back and 3-back conditions three times per condition. They then undertook identical retest sessions 3 weeks later (M = 21.2 days, SD = 0.9). Over the course of the task, activation in the participants' frontopolar, dorsomedial, dorsolateral, ventrolateral, and posterolateral

SUBMITTER: Yeung MK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9971214 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature