June 14, 2011
Brain training can boost kids' intelligence
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ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Children who "train"
their brain to increase memory can also boost their abilities to
solve problems and reason, a new University of Michigan study
indicated.
Those abilities, which are called fluid
intelligence, are thought to be predictors of educational success.
Researchers have long debated whether fluid intelligence can be
sustainably improved by training.
In a study involving 62 elementary and middle
school children from southeast Michigan, the researchers tested
whether training aimed at boosting working memory, which allows
people to store and retrieve small amounts of information over
brief periods, can improve fluid intelligence. Susanne Jaeggi,
Martin Buschkuehl, John Jonides and Priti Shah, all researchers in
the U-M Department of Psychology, conducted the study.
The authors assigned students to one of two
groups that trained for a month—five times a week and 15
minutes per session—on computerized tasks resembling video
games. While one group trained on a task that engaged working
memory, the other group exercised general knowledge and vocabulary
skills.
Three months after training ended, the children
who trained well on the working memory game performed better on
tests of fluid intelligence, compared with those who did not train
as well or those who trained on general knowledge and
vocabulary.
"Individual differences in training influenced
the children's performance on the intelligence tests," Jaeggi
said.
A difference could involve a child with a large
training gain improved more in fluid intelligence because he
started off with lower ability and had more room for improvement.
Another difference could be the finding that children who did not
benefit from the training found the working memory intervention too
difficult and required too much effort, were easily frustrated, and
became disengaged.
The researchers said short- and long-term
benefits of cognitive training can be compared to the overall
health improvement from a person exercising.
"Our current finding makes sense when you think
of physical training," she said. "If you don't try and really go
running instead of just walking, you won't improve your
cardiovascular fitness."
The researchers are now investigating whether
this intervention might also be beneficial for children with
working memory and attention deficits. In addition, they are
working on an intervention which can be easily implemented in
schools and other educational settings.
The findings appear in Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) and the research is funded by
the Department of Education's Institute for Educational
Sciences.
SOURCE
