I Got Rhythm and Executive Function, Memory, and More: The Automated Test of Embodied Cognition (ATEC)

Background: The Automated Test of Embodied Cognition (ATEC) is a new system for measuring cognition in action that uses cognitively demanding physical tasks and motion capture technology. Rhythm is one of the domains assessed by the ATEC across a number of tasks and is a domain for which there is no broadly accepted neurocognitive measure. Method: Rhythm was assessed in a sample of 104 participants that included those at risk of cognitive decline and community controls. At-risk participants were also administered standard measures of executive functioning (EF), verbal list-learning, story memory, visual memory, and pre-morbid IQ. Results: The ATEC Rhythm Domain was found in the factor analysis with Varimax rotation to be loaded distinctly on the EF factor. ATEC Rhythm was significantly correlated with EF neurocognitive measures, and, in a Chi-square analysis, significantly differentiated the community control participants from those at risk for cognitive decline. ATEC Rhythm was significantly correlated with story memory and visual memory but not verbal list-learning. Age was negatively correlated with ATEC Rhythm, and women performed slightly better than men. ATEC Rhythm was also significantly correlated with the years of education and an estimate of pre-morbid IQ. Discussion: ATEC Rhythm was found to have discriminant and concurrent validity with EF measures and was significantly correlated with measures of story memory and visual memory, but not verbal list-learning. We speculate on rhythm's relationship to story narrative and visual sequencing, and on rhythm's relationship to cognitive reserve, as represented by education and the pre-morbid IQ estimate. Conclusions: The ATEC is a promising new measure that provides a systematic assessment of rhythm as a domain of embodied cognition. It may be useful in studies of neurodevelopment and neurocognitive decline, and it may be especially useful in assessing the effects of interventions that use physical activities, including dance and music therapies.