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Divided attention impairments after traumatic brain injury
N W Park1, M Moscovitch, I H Robertson
1Department of Psychology, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. npark@credit.erin.utoronto.ca
Neuropsychologia
|October 6, 1999
Summary
People with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) struggle with divided attention tasks that need working memory. This impairment is evident when tasks are performed concurrently, not separately, especially when controlled processing is required.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Rehabilitation Medicine
Background:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can lead to cognitive deficits.
- Divided attention and working memory are crucial cognitive functions.
- Understanding TBI's impact on these functions is vital for rehabilitation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate divided attention impairments in individuals with severe TBI.
- To determine the role of working memory in TBI-related attention deficits.
- To explore the influence of task control demands on divided attention in TBI.
Main Methods:
- Two experiments were conducted comparing severe TBI and control groups.
- Participants performed working memory tasks separately and concurrently.
- A meta-analysis synthesized findings on TBI and divided attention under varying processing demands.
Main Results:
- The TBI group showed significantly impaired divided attention when performing two working memory tasks concurrently.
- No significant differences were observed between groups when tasks were performed individually.
- Performance improved with increased intertrial intervals in a serial addition task for both groups.
- Meta-analysis confirmed divided attention deficits in TBI for tasks requiring controlled processing, but not automatic processing.
Conclusions:
- Severe TBI is associated with specific deficits in divided attention, particularly when tasks demand controlled processing and working memory.
- Cognitive rehabilitation strategies should address these specific attentional challenges in TBI survivors.
- Distinguishing between controlled and automatic processing is key to understanding TBI's impact on attention.