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Updated: Jun 28, 2026
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Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
Working memory training in older adults: Load- and phase-dependent changes in brain activation.
Samantha Maltezos1, Samira Mellah2, Lynn Valeyry Verty1
1Research Center, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada; Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Behavioural Brain Research
|June 26, 2026
Summary
Cognitive training enhances working memory in older adults by improving brain activity efficiency. Gains are linked to reduced activation for simple tasks and increased recruitment for complex ones, restoring youth-like brain function.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Gerontology
Background:
- Cognitive training shows promise for improving working memory in older adults.
- Brain changes associated with cognitive training in older adults are not well understood.
- Task load and training phase may influence training-related brain activation changes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how brain activation changes in older adults with working memory training improvement.
- To examine the influence of task load and training phase on these brain changes.
- To compare brain activation patterns in older adults to younger adults.
Main Methods:
- fMRI scans were used to assess brain activation in older adults undergoing working memory training or an active control.
- Participants completed an N-back task at low (1-back) and high (2-back) load across three time points: pre-training, mid-training, and post-training.
- Younger adults served as an age comparison group for brain activation.
Main Results:
- Working memory training improvement correlated with decreased frontoparietal activity early in training (1-back) and increased frontal activity later (2-back).
- No significant associations were found in the control group.
- Training reduced age-related differences in load-modulated brain activation, making older adults' patterns more similar to younger adults'.
Conclusions:
- Working memory training leads to more efficient brain activation for low-load tasks in older adults.
- Training enhances the ability to recruit neural resources for demanding tasks in older adults.
- Cognitive training can restore more youth-like patterns of brain activation modulation in older adults.
Keywords:
AgingCognitive trainingFunctional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)NeuroplasticityWorking memoryMore Related Videos
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