Impact of Multimodal Cognitive Training on Cognitive Traits of Children: A Multi-centric Interventional Study

Published: 22 January 2021| Version 1 | DOI: 10.17632/szf5gz82jp.1
Contributor:
Praveen Pankajakshan

Description

Cognitive training (CT) has recently become appealing for children and elderly citizens, and in this article we evaluated one such cognitive skills enhancement training program called the Brighter Minds. We explore the hypothesis that CT can work on some of the inherent traits of a child and thus bring a change in the external behavior. A controlled before and after study was conducted for this program, and a total of 186 children (93 each in intervention and control group) participated in the study from three different locations. A selected set of psychometric tests, parental/ caregiver interviews and EEG (electroencephalography) tests were conducted before and after the study. Psychometric test results showed strong statistical significance improvements in tests of Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE) (P<0.01), and Memory profile (P<0.01). The parental/ caregiver interview results showed that, among the intervention group, statistically significant improvements were seen in child’s focus (P<0.05), empathy (P<0.05), intuition (P<0.05), comprehension (P<0.05) and child’s understanding of abstract concepts (P<0.05). In the EEG Power Spectral Density (PSD), there were differences observed between the control and the intervention group. During the baseline eyes-closed (EC) EEG recording for the control group, the spectrum below 20Hz exhibited the characteristic “1/f” spectral scaling of the power-law. This signature matches prior reported evidence in literature of those in wakeful state. The intervention group EC PSD, however, exhibited a signature similar to those in a slow sleep state reflective of the possible transfer effect of the training on other skills like relaxation.

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Categories

Behavior (Neuroscience), Cognition, Memory, Cognitive Assessment, Electroencephalogram, Raven's Progressive Matrices, Psychometric Testing, Mini-Mental State Examination Score

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