The literature suggests working memory can have a significant effect on children's academic success. A number of working memory training programmes have been developed as tools for helping children to boost their working memory and learning ability. The reliability and validity of this body of evidence has been challenged recently with questions raised as to whether such programmes actually do boost working memory or show any subsequent impact upon learning. The thesis contains an evaluative systematic review examining eight studies from the last decade that explore the effects of working memory training on working memory, literacy and numeracy. The review found significant near and far transfer effects for improvements to working memory with differences in the pattern of these improvements. The assertion that working memory training leads to improvements in other areas such as literacy and numeracy is also challenged. The thesis also contains an examination of the efficacy of a paired whole class working memory intervention in delivering improvements in the working memory, literacy and numeracy skills of primary aged school children. The pre-experimental design tested the impact of the intervention on the working memory, literacy and numeracy of a sample of forty-one Year 4 children. The data demonstrated a significant positive immediate effect of the programme on verbal working memory recall and processing and visual-spatial working memory processing and recall. No significant immediate effects of the programme were found on numeracy or literacy. Finally a critical appraisal of concepts of evidence based practice and a review of the literature regarding the dissemination of research and notions of research impact is presented. The implications of the current research for professional practice is explored in terms of the care that must be taken by educational professionals in offering up working memory training programmes as solutions to academic underachievement in children.

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With increasing life expectancy and global population of older adults, preserving cog- nitive function throughout life represents a growing priority. Numerous approaches to cognitive enhancement exist, but few have scientific merit. Among the most preva- lent – and commercialized – approaches are cognitive training (“brain training”) and non-invasive brain stimulation through electric currents applied at the surface of the scalp. The present dissertation describes a collection of work contextualizing the appeal of these cognitive enhancement methods and addressing some of the most pervasive limitations of research in this field thus far. One largely ignored issue in cognitive intervention research pertains to people’s expectations of programs and their relationship with intervention outcomes. In a series of initial studies, we developed and validated the Expectation Assessment Scale (EAS), a tool created to measure as well as prime expectations of outcomes in the context of cognitive enhancement interventions. In our first two studies, we probed expectations of cognitive training or non-invasive brain stimulation in over 1,000 young, middle-aged, and older adults. Ratings on the EAS suggested that older adults may have particularly high expectations of cognitive training, but that expectations can be primed to increase or decrease – at least in hypothetical scenarios. We used these data to assess the psychometric properties of the EAS with item-response theory, and confirmed its internal consistency. Next, we incorporated the EAS into two cognitive enhancement trials, one in- vestigating a computerized cognitive training intervention in nearly 100 older adults and another examining non-invasive brain stimulation in nearly 100 young adults. Both trials had a double-blind balanced-placebo design in which participants were assigned to the intervention or control condition, and then subdivided to receive ei- ther high or low expectation priming (i.e., primed to have high or low expectations of the program’s effectiveness). Although expectation ratings replicated our previous findings, results from these trials suggest little, if any, effect of either expectations or the intervention on performance outcomes. We nevertheless found that participants enjoyed their assigned program and that those who received high expectation prim- ing tended to report a more positive experience. Our findings put into question the effectiveness of such interventions and support the need for more rigorous trials of cognitive enhancement.

The current study examined electrical brain activation in adolescent participants playing three different video games. Forty-five school aged children (M=14.3 years, SD=1.5) were randomly assigned to play either a violent game, non-violent game, or a non-violent game specifically designed to "train" the brain. Electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded during video game play. Results revealed an asymmetric right hemisphere activation in the alpha band for participants in violent game group, while those in the non-violent groups exhibited left hemispheric activation. Greater right activation in emotion literature denotes signs of withdrawal or avoidance from undesired stimulus. Implications of this finding as well as other findings related to electrical brain activation during video game play is discussed further in the manuscript.

Obesity is a complex issue; stress, depression, and food addiction, are several psychological conditions that can accompany an obesity diagnosis. Emotional Brain Training (EBT) was evaluated as a new approach to these conditions. Stress, depression, food addiction, and weight were assessed at baseline, after a seven week active intervention, and after a seven week no contact period. The final sample consisted of 26 obese adults. At seven week assessments, EBT participants experienced significant weight loss (p-value = 0.05) and decreased perceived stress (p-value = 0.035). Food addiction also decreased from 50% to 8.3% (or one participant). At fourteen week assessments, EBT participants maintained significant weight loss (p-value = 0.05) and increased perceived stress from the seven week evaluation (p-value = 0.012). The percentage classified as food addicted remained constant at fourteen weeks. This study suggests EBT is an appropriate intervention for weight loss and weight maintenance. In addition, EBT targets a variety of the complex issues surrounding obesity.

Des interventions ciblant l’amélioration cognitive sont de plus en plus à l’intérêt dans nombreux domaines, y compris la neuropsychologie. Bien qu'il existe de nombreuses méthodes pour maximiser le potentiel cognitif de quelqu’un, ils sont rarement appuyé par la recherche scientifique. D’abord, ce mémoire examine brièvement l'état des interventions d'amélioration cognitives. Il décrit premièrement les faiblesses observées dans ces pratiques et par conséquent il établit un modèle standard contre lequel on pourrait et devrait évaluer les diverses techniques ciblant l'amélioration cognitive. Une étude de recherche est ensuite présenté qui considère un nouvel outil de l'amélioration cognitive, une tâche d’entrainement perceptivo-cognitive : 3-dimensional multiple object tracking (3D-MOT). Il examine les preuves actuelles pour le 3D-MOT auprès du modèle standard proposé. Les résultats de ce projet démontrent de l’augmentation dans les capacités d’attention, de mémoire de travail visuel et de vitesse de traitement d’information. Cette étude représente la première étape dans la démarche vers l’établissement du 3D-MOT comme un outil d’amélioration cognitive. / Cognitive enhancement is a domain of burgeoning interest in many domains including neuropsychology. While there are different methods that exist in order to achieve cognitive enhancement, there are few that are supported by research. The current work examines the state of cognitive enhancement interventions. It first outlines the weaknesses observed in these practices and then proposes a standard template for assessing cognitive enhancement tools. A research study is then presented that examines a novel cognitive enhancement tool, 3-dimensional multiple object tracking (3D-MOT), and weighs the current evidence for 3D-MOT against the proposed standard template. The results of the current work demonstrate that 3D-MOT is effective in enhancing attention, working memory and visual information processing speed, and represent a first step toward establishing 3D-MOT as a cognitive enhancement tool.

Pour être performant au plus haut niveau, les athlètes doivent posséder une capacité perceptivo-cognitive supérieure à la moyenne. Cette faculté, reflétée sur le terrain par la vision et l’intelligence de jeu des sportifs, permet d’extraire l’information clé de la scène visuelle. La science du sport a depuis longtemps observé l’expertise perceptivo-cognitive au sein de l’environnement sportif propre aux athlètes. Récemment, des études ont rapporté que l’expertise pouvait également se refléter hors de ce contexte, lors d’activités du quotidien par exemple. De plus, les récentes théories entourant la capacité plastique du cerveau ont amené les chercheurs à développer des outils pour entraîner les capacités perceptivo-cognitives des athlètes afin de les rendre plus performants sur le terrain. Ces méthodes sont la plupart du temps contextuelles à la discipline visée. Cependant, un nouvel outil d’entraînement perceptivo-cognitif, nommé 3-Dimensional Multiple Object Tracking (3D-MOT) et dénué de contexte sportif, a récemment vu le jour et a fait l’objet de nos recherches. Un de nos objectifs visait à mettre en évidence l’expertise perceptivo-cognitive spécifique et non-spécifique chez des athlètes lors d’une même étude. Nous avons évalué la perception du mouvement biologique chez des joueurs de soccer et des non-athlètes dans une salle de réalité virtuelle. Les sportifs étaient systématiquement plus performants en termes d’efficacité et de temps de réaction que les novices pour discriminer la direction du mouvement biologique lors d’un exercice spécifique de soccer (tir) mais également lors d’une action issue du quotidien (marche). Ces résultats signifient que les athlètes possèdent une meilleure capacité à percevoir les mouvements biologiques humains effectués par les autres. La pratique du soccer semble donc conférer un avantage fondamental qui va au-delà des fonctions spécifiques à la pratique d’un sport. Ces découvertes sont à mettre en parallèle avec la performance exceptionnelle des athlètes dans le traitement de scènes visuelles dynamiques et également dénuées de contexte sportif. Des joueurs de soccer ont surpassé des novices dans le test de 3D-MOT qui consiste à suivre des cibles en mouvement et stimule les capacités perceptivo-cognitives. Leur vitesse de suivi visuel ainsi que leur faculté d’apprentissage étaient supérieures. Ces résultats confirmaient des données obtenues précédemment chez des sportifs. Le 3D-MOT est un test de poursuite attentionnelle qui stimule le traitement actif de l’information visuelle dynamique. En particulier, l’attention sélective, dynamique et soutenue ainsi que la mémoire de travail. Cet outil peut être utilisé pour entraîner les fonctions perceptivo-cognitives des athlètes. Des joueurs de soccer entraînés au 3D-MOT durant 30 sessions ont montré une amélioration de la prise de décision dans les passes de 15% sur le terrain comparés à des joueurs de groupes contrôles. Ces données démontrent pour la première fois un transfert perceptivo-cognitif du laboratoire au terrain suivant un entraînement perceptivo-cognitif non-contextuel au sport de l’athlète ciblé. Nos recherches aident à comprendre l’expertise des athlètes par l’approche spécifique et non-spécifique et présentent également les outils d’entraînements perceptivo-cognitifs, en particulier le 3D-MOT, pour améliorer la performance dans le sport de haut-niveau. / To perform at the top, athletes must possess a special perceptual-cognitive ability. This talent is the capacity to extract key information from a visual scene and is reflected by sportsmen’s vision and intelligence of play. For a long time, sport science has reported perceptual-cognitive expertise inside the domain-specific sport environment of athletes. But more recently, evidence has shown that expertise could also been reflected outside of this context, in daily activities for instance. Moreover, recent theories surrounding brain plasticity have driven researchers to develop new tools to train perceptual-cognitive skills of athletes in order to increase performance on the field. Those methods are mostly contextual to the athlete’s discipline. However, a new perceptual-cognitive training methodology, called 3-Dimensional Multiple Object Tracking (3D-MOT), which is deprived of sport context, has recently been developed and took a center part in our researches. One of the main objectives was to observe athletes’ specific and non-specific expertise during the same study. We evaluated biological motion perception in soccer players and non-athletes in a virtual reality environment. Sportsmen were systematically more efficient and faster compared to novices when discriminating the direction of the biological motion during a soccer specific exercise (shot) but also during a daily action (walk). The results suggest that athletes are better capable in perceiving human biological motions performed by others. Soccer activity seems to confer a fundamental advantage that goes beyond sport specific functions. Concurrent with those discoveries, we observed the amazing ability of an athlete’s performance to process dynamic and neutral visual scenes. Soccer players outperformed novices throughout the 3D-MOT test which consists in tracking moving targets and simulates perceptual-cognitive skills. Their visual tracking speed and their learning ability were superior. The results confirm previous data obtained by sport experts. The 3D-MOT is an attentional tracking paradigm that stimulates active processing of dynamic visual information. In particular, it targets selective, dynamic and sustained attention, as well as working memory. This tool can be used to train perceptual-cognitive functions of athletes. Soccer players trained with the 3D-MOT throughout 30 sessions have shown an increase in passing decision making (15%) on the field compared to control groups. For the first time, the results demonstrate a perceptual-cognitive transfer from the laboratory to the field following a non-contextual perceptual-cognitive training program. Our research helps to understand athletes’ expertise by using both specific and non-specific approaches and also present perceptual-cognitive training tools, in particular the 3D-MOT technique, to improve performance in sport.