This dissertation considers different aspects of early childhood education in Germany. It aims at providing an empirical contribution to four issues in early childhood education: the development of cognitive and noncognitive skills (chapter 1-3), institutional child care (chapter 4), the intergenerational transmission of a child's health (chapter 5), and the long-term consequences of early noncognitive skills (chapter 6). This is done by using two data sets: First, we use the mother and child data from the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP) for the years 2003-2008. The mother and child questionnaire, firstly implemented in 2003, contains detailed information on a child's cognitive and noncognitive skills and health, starting from the time of birth. This information on a child's human capital was assessed by the mothers. Second, we exploit a prospective psychological longitudinal panel study on child development from birth until adulthood, the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk (MARS). These data allow us to use more reliable information on a child's cognitive and noncognitive skills from the age of three months on. However, this study is not representative because children at risk are oversampled. Altogether, the different studies suggest that parental investment (economic resources or non-economic resources) in children explain, at least to some extent, the development of cognitive and noncognitive skills as well as the child's health status. Scope for further research is pointed out, particularly related to long-term consequences of cognitive and noncognitive skills acquired during early childhood. A deeper understanding of how skills develop over the life cycle promises to enrich the economic theory and helps to understand the sources as well as the solutions for inequality. / Die vorliegende Dissertation untersucht verschiedene Aspekte der frühkindlichen Bildung in Deutschland. Während sich die empirische Bildungsforschung in den letzten Jahren intensiv mit Fragen der institutionellen Bildung beschäftigt hat, weisen aktuell geführte familien- und bildungspolitische Diskussionen und neuere Forschungsstudien zunehmend auf die Bedeutung der frühkindlichen Entwicklungsphase als erste Phase für die Entwicklung und Förderung von Humankapital hin. Die Arbeit nimmt die aktuelle Diskussion zum Anlass, unterschiedliche Aspekte der frühkindlichen Bildung in Deutschland zu untersuchen. Die ersten drei Kapitel dieser Arbeit untersuchen, wie sich Fähigkeiten in der (frühen) Kindheit entwickeln. Dafür wird eine Fähigkeitsproduktionsfunktion zugrunde gelegt und deren zentrale Eigenschaften zu unterschiedlichen Phasen innerhalb der (frühen) Kindheit auf ihre empirische Relevanz hin untersucht. Darüber hinaus ist es möglich, Wirkungen unterschiedlicher Investitionen für die Entwicklung kognitiver und nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten innerhalb der ersten Lebensjahre zu beleuchten und geeignete politische Instrumente daraus abzuleiten. Kapitel vier beleuchtet den Aspekt der institutionellen Kinderbetreuung für die frühkindliche Bildung in Westdeutschland. Die zugrundeliegende Überlegung dieses Abschnitts ist die Frage, ob der institutionellen Kinderbetreuung in Deutschland neben seiner Betreuungsfunktion neuerdings auch eine Bildungsfunktion zugesprochen wird. Zahlreiche Studien zeigen, dass die Gesundheit in der frühen Kindheit eine zentrale Rolle für die Gesundheit im Erwachsenenalter spielt, und gleichzeitig den Erwerb von Fähigkeiten in der frühen Kindheit und damit auch für spätere Lebensphasen unmittelbar beeinflusst. Die Rolle der Gesundheit innerhalb in der ersten Lebensjahre wird in Kapitel 5 untersucht. Neben der unumstrittenen Bedeutung kognitiver Fähigkeiten für eine Vielzahl ökonomischer und nicht-ökonomischer Outcomes, zeigen neuere Studien die Bedeutung nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten. Im letzten Kapitel (sechs) werden daher mittel- bis langfristige Konsequenzen geringer nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten in der frühen Kindheit für eine Reihe von sozialen Outcomes (Schulleistungen, Gesundheitsverhalten, Persönlichkeit) im Jugendalter analysiert.

Objective: To study awareness of cognitive dysfunction in patients with very mild Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: A complaint interview covering 13 cognitive domains was administered to 82 AD and 79 MCI patients and their caregivers. The patient groups were comparable according to age and education, and Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores were ≥24 in all cases. The discrepancy between the patients’ and caregivers’ estimations of impairments was taken as a measure of anosognosia. Results: Self-reports of cognitive difficulties were comparable for AD and MCI patients. However, while in comparison to caregivers MCI patients reported significantly more cognitive impairment (p < 0.05), AD patients complained significantly less cognitive dysfunctions (p < 0.001). Conclusions: While most MCI patients tend to overestimate cognitive deficits when compared to their caregiver’s assessment, AD patients in early stages of disease underestimate cognitive dysfunctions. Anosognosia can thus be regarded as a characteristic symptom at a stage of very mild AD (MMSE ≥24) but not MCI. Accordingly, medical history even in mildly affected patients should always include information from both patient and caregiver. / Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.

A multitude of sensory inputs needs to be processed during sensorimotor integration. A crucial factor for detecting relevant information is its complexity, since information content can be conflicting at a perceptual level. This may be central to executive control processes, such as response inhibition. This EEG study aims to investigate the system neurophysiological mechanisms behind effects of perceptual conflict on response inhibition. We systematically modulated perceptual conflict by integrating a Global-local task with a Go/Nogo paradigm. The results show that conflicting perceptual information, in comparison to non-conflicting perceptual information, impairs response inhibition performance. This effect was evident regardless of whether the relevant information for response inhibition is displayed on the global, or local perceptual level. The neurophysiological data suggests that early perceptual/ attentional processing stages do not underlie these modulations. Rather, processes at the response selection level (P3), play a role in changed response inhibition performance. This conflict-related impairment of inhibitory processes is associated with activation differences in (inferior) parietal areas (BA7 and BA40) and not as commonly found in the medial prefrontal areas. This suggests that various functional neuroanatomical structures may mediate response inhibition and that the functional neuroanatomical structures involved depend on the complexity of sensory integration processes.

Die vorliegende Dissertation nähert sich aktuellen Kontroversen in der Forschung zur kognitiven Beanspruchung in Lehr-Lernsituationen im Zusammenhang mit der Abgrenzung und dem Zusammenspiel ressourcenbeanspruchender Faktoren unter einer zeitbezogenen Perspektive. In einem neuartigen Forschungsansatz werden zu diesem Zweck experimentelle Aufgaben aus der kognitiven Grundlagenforschung angewendet und verschiedene Methoden zur Erfassung der kognitiven Beanspruchung und der Betrachtung zugrunde liegender kognitiver Prozesse kombiniert. Zusammenfassend betonen die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse eine prozessgeleitete Rekonzeptualisierung des bestehenden theoretischen Rahmenmodells der kognitiven Beanspruchung und unterstreichen zusätzlich die Bedeutung eines multimethodischen Ansatzes zur kontinuierlichen Erfassung der kognitiven Beanspruchung. Auf praktischer Seite lassen sich zentrale Hinweise für die Entwicklung adaptiver Algorithmen sowie eine an den Lernenden orientierte Gestaltung instruktionaler Prozesse ableiten, welche den Weg zu intelligenten Lehr-Lernsystemen eröffnen. / This thesis addresses ongoing controversies in cognitive load research related to the scope and interplay of resource-demanding factors in instructional situations on a temporal perspective. In a novel approach, it applies experimental task frameworks from basic cognitive research and combines different methods for assessing cognitive load and underlying cognitive processes. Taken together, the obtained evidence emphasizes a process-related reconceptualization of the existing theoretical cognitive load framework and underlines the importance of a multimethod-approach to continuous cognitive load assessment. On a practical side, it informs the development of adaptive algorithms and the learner-aligned design of instructional support and thus leverages a pathway towards intelligent educational assistants.

This dissertation considers different aspects of early childhood education in Germany. It aims at providing an empirical contribution to four issues in early childhood education: the development of cognitive and noncognitive skills (chapter 1-3), institutional child care (chapter 4), the intergenerational transmission of a child's health (chapter 5), and the long-term consequences of early noncognitive skills (chapter 6). This is done by using two data sets: First, we use the mother and child data from the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP) for the years 2003-2008. The mother and child questionnaire, firstly implemented in 2003, contains detailed information on a child's cognitive and noncognitive skills and health, starting from the time of birth. This information on a child's human capital was assessed by the mothers. Second, we exploit a prospective psychological longitudinal panel study on child development from birth until adulthood, the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk (MARS). These data allow us to use more reliable information on a child's cognitive and noncognitive skills from the age of three months on. However, this study is not representative because children at risk are oversampled. Altogether, the different studies suggest that parental investment (economic resources or non-economic resources) in children explain, at least to some extent, the development of cognitive and noncognitive skills as well as the child's health status. Scope for further research is pointed out, particularly related to long-term consequences of cognitive and noncognitive skills acquired during early childhood. A deeper understanding of how skills develop over the life cycle promises to enrich the economic theory and helps to understand the sources as well as the solutions for inequality. / Die vorliegende Dissertation untersucht verschiedene Aspekte der frühkindlichen Bildung in Deutschland. Während sich die empirische Bildungsforschung in den letzten Jahren intensiv mit Fragen der institutionellen Bildung beschäftigt hat, weisen aktuell geführte familien- und bildungspolitische Diskussionen und neuere Forschungsstudien zunehmend auf die Bedeutung der frühkindlichen Entwicklungsphase als erste Phase für die Entwicklung und Förderung von Humankapital hin. Die Arbeit nimmt die aktuelle Diskussion zum Anlass, unterschiedliche Aspekte der frühkindlichen Bildung in Deutschland zu untersuchen. Die ersten drei Kapitel dieser Arbeit untersuchen, wie sich Fähigkeiten in der (frühen) Kindheit entwickeln. Dafür wird eine Fähigkeitsproduktionsfunktion zugrunde gelegt und deren zentrale Eigenschaften zu unterschiedlichen Phasen innerhalb der (frühen) Kindheit auf ihre empirische Relevanz hin untersucht. Darüber hinaus ist es möglich, Wirkungen unterschiedlicher Investitionen für die Entwicklung kognitiver und nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten innerhalb der ersten Lebensjahre zu beleuchten und geeignete politische Instrumente daraus abzuleiten. Kapitel vier beleuchtet den Aspekt der institutionellen Kinderbetreuung für die frühkindliche Bildung in Westdeutschland. Die zugrundeliegende Überlegung dieses Abschnitts ist die Frage, ob der institutionellen Kinderbetreuung in Deutschland neben seiner Betreuungsfunktion neuerdings auch eine Bildungsfunktion zugesprochen wird. Zahlreiche Studien zeigen, dass die Gesundheit in der frühen Kindheit eine zentrale Rolle für die Gesundheit im Erwachsenenalter spielt, und gleichzeitig den Erwerb von Fähigkeiten in der frühen Kindheit und damit auch für spätere Lebensphasen unmittelbar beeinflusst. Die Rolle der Gesundheit innerhalb in der ersten Lebensjahre wird in Kapitel 5 untersucht. Neben der unumstrittenen Bedeutung kognitiver Fähigkeiten für eine Vielzahl ökonomischer und nicht-ökonomischer Outcomes, zeigen neuere Studien die Bedeutung nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten. Im letzten Kapitel (sechs) werden daher mittel- bis langfristige Konsequenzen geringer nicht-kognitiver Fähigkeiten in der frühen Kindheit für eine Reihe von sozialen Outcomes (Schulleistungen, Gesundheitsverhalten, Persönlichkeit) im Jugendalter analysiert.

A natural auditory scene contains many sound sources each of which produces complex sounds. These sounds overlap and reach our ears at the same time, but they also change constantly. To still be able to follow the sound source of interest, the auditory system must decide where each individual tone belongs to and integrate this information over time. For well-controlled investigations on the mechanisms behind this challenging task, sound sources need to be simulated in the lab. This is mostly done with sine tones arranged in certain spectrotemporal patterns. The vast majority of studies simply interleave two sub-sequences of sine tones. Participants report how they perceive these sequences or they perform a task whose performance measure allows hints on how the scene was perceived. While many important insights have been gained with this procedure, the questions that can be addressed with it are limited and the commonly used response methods are partly susceptible to distortions or only indirect measures. The present thesis enlarged the complexity of the tone sequences and the diversity of perceptual measures used for investigations on auditory scene analysis. These changes are intended to open up new questions and give new perspectives on our knowledge about auditory scene analysis. In detail, the thesis established three-tone sequences as a tool for specific investigations on the perceptual foreground and background processing in complex auditory scenes. In addition, it modifies an already established approach for indirect measures of auditory perception in a way that enables detailed and univocal investigations on background processing. Finally, a new response method, namely a no-report method for auditory perception that might also serve as a method to validate subjective report measures, was developed. This new methodological approach uses eye movements as a measurement tool for auditory perception. With the aid of all these methodological improvements, the current thesis shows that auditory foreground formation is actually more complex than previously assumed since listeners hold more than one auditory source in the foreground without being forced to do so. In addition, it shows that the auditory system prefers a limited number of specific source configurations probably to avoid combinatorial explosion. Finally, the thesis indicates that the formation of the perceptual background is also quite complex since the auditory system holds perceptual organization alternatives in parallel that were basically assumed to be mutually exclusive. Thus, both the foreground and the background follow different rules than expected based on two-tone sequences. However, one finding seems to be true for both kinds of sequences: the impact of the tone pattern on the subjective perception is marginal, be it in two- or three-tone sequences. Regarding the no-report method for auditory perception, the thesis shows that eye movements and the reported auditory foreground formations were in good agreement and it seems like this approach indeed has the potential to become a first no-report measure for auditory perception.:Abstract 3 Acknowledgments 5 List of Figures 8 List of Tables 9 Collaborations 11 1 General Introduction 13 1.1 The auditory foreground 13 1.1.1 Attention and auditory scene analysis 13 1.1.2 Investigating auditory scene analysis with two-tone sequences 16 1.1.3 Multistability 18 1.2 The auditory background 21 1.2.1 Investigating auditory background processing 22 1.3 Measures of auditory perception 23 1.3.1 Report procedures 23 1.3.2 Performance-based measures 26 1.3.3 Psychophysiological measures 27 1.4 Summary and goals of the thesis 30 2 The auditory foreground 33 2.1 Study 1: Foreground formation in three-tone sequences 33 2.1.1 Abstract 33 2.1.2 Introduction 33 2.1.3 Methods 37 2.1.4 Results 43 2.1.5 Discussion 48 2.2 Study 2: Pattern effects in three-tone sequences 53 2.2.1 Abstract 53 2.2.2 Methods 53 2.2.3 Results 54 2.2.4 Discussion 58 2.3 Study 3: Pattern effects in two-tone sequences 59 2.3.1 Abstract 59 2.3.2 Introduction 59 2.3.3 General Methods 63 2.3.4 Experiment 1 – Methods and Results 65 2.3.5 Experiment 2 – Methods and Results 67 2.3.6 Experiment 3 – Methods and Results 70 2.3.7 Discussion 72 3 The auditory background 74 3.1 Study 4: Background formation in three-tone sequences 74 3.1.1 Abstract 74 3.1.2 Introduction 74 3.1.3 Methods 77 3.1.4 Results 82 3.1.5 Discussion 86 4 Audio-visual coupling for investigations on auditory perception 90 4.1 Study 5: Using Binocular Rivalry to tag auditory perception 90 4.1.1 Abstract 90 4.1.2 Introduction 90 4.1.3 Methods 92 4.1.4 Results 100 4.1.5 Discussion 108 5 General Discussion 113 5.1 Short review of the findings 113 5.2 The auditory foreground 114 5.2.1 Auditory foreground formation and attention theories 114 5.2.2 The role of tone pattern in foreground formation 116 5.2.3 Methodological considerations and continuation 117 5.3 The auditory background 118 5.3.1 Auditory object formation without attention 120 5.3.2 Multistability without attention 121 5.3.3 Methodological considerations and continuation 122 5.4 Auditory scene analysis by audio-visual coupling 124 5.4.1 Methodological considerations and continuation 124 5.5 Artificial listening situations and conclusions on natural hearing 126 6 Conclusions 128 References 130

Objective: Cognitive reserve influences age of onset, speed of progression, and clinical manifestations of Alzheimer’s disease. We investigated whether cognitive reserve interacts with clinical and neuropsychological parameters in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 273 people (70.6 ± 10.1 years, 54.6% women) suffering from subjective memory complaints (n = 65), MCI (n = 121), or dementia (n = 87). Patients underwent neuropsychological evaluation, laboratory testing, and brain imaging. Additionally, we obtained information on years of education and help-seeking motivation. Results: MCI patients with a university degree were significantly older than those without (71.6 ± 9.6 vs. 66.9 ± 10.3, p = 0.02). University-educated MCI patients demonstrated superior performance in verbal fluency. Intrinsic help-seeking motivation (self-referral) was associated with higher cognitive reserve. Female MCI patients presented with greater intrinsic motivation. Conclusion: Cognitive reserve modulates clinical and neuropsychological measures in patients with MCI.

The neurophysiological processes underlying the inhibition of impulsive responses have been studied extensively. While also the role of theta oscillations during response inhibition is well examined, the relevance of resting-state theta activity for inhibitory control processes is largely unknown. We test the hypothesis that there are specific relationships between resting-state theta activity and sensory/motor coding levels during response inhibition using EEG methods. We show that resting theta activity is specifically linked to the stimulus-related fraction of neurophysiological activity in specific time windows during motor inhibition. In contrast, concomitantly coded processes related to decision-making or response selection as well as the behavioral inhibition performance were not associated with resting theta activity. Even at the peak of task-related theta power, where task-related theta activity and resting theta activity differed the most, there was still predominantly a significant correlation between both types of theta activity. This suggests that aspects similar to resting dynamics are evident in the proportion of inhibition-related neurophysiological activity that reflects an “alarm” signal, whose function is to process and indicate the need for cognitive control. Thus, specific aspects of task-related theta power may build upon resting theta activity when cognitive control is necessary.

Audience Response Systeme bzw. Clicker bieten die Möglichkeit, Studierende aktiv in Lehrveranstaltungen einzubinden, indem ihnen auf Smartphones oder eigens dafür vorgesehenen Geräten Fragen zur Verfügung gestellt werden (z.B. SMILE]). Das Abstimmungsergebnis kann wiederum vom Dozierenden aufgegriffen und in der Veranstaltung thematisiert werden. Das an der Technischen Universität Dresden entwickelte System „Auditorium Mobile Classroom Service“ (AMCS) bietet zahlreiche weitere Funktionalitäten, die es erlauben Studierende bei Lernprozessen in der Vorlesung zu unterstützen und gleichzeitig eine informative Evaluation der Lehrveranstaltung ermöglichen. Die Funktionalitäten des Systems wurden auf der Grundlage lernpsychologischer Forschung entwickelt (bspw. Modellen des Selbstregulierten Lernens): sie haben gemeinsam das Ziel, Studierende in Abhängigkeit individueller Bedürfnisse dabei zu unterstützen, in der Vorlesung möglichst viel zu lernen. Die Lehrenden haben darüberhinaus die Möglichkeit, umfangreiche Informationen zur Evaluation der Lehrveranstaltung zu gewinnen.

Neuro-computational models allow to study the brain mechanisms involved in intelligent behavior and extract essential computational principles which can be implemented in cognitive systems. They are a promising solution to achieve a brain-like artificial intelligence that can compete with natural intelligence on realistic behaviors. A crucial property of intelligent behavior is motivation, defined as the incentive to interact with the world in order to achieve specific goals, either extrinsic (obtaining rewards such as food or money, or avoiding pain) or intrinsic (satisfying one’s curiosity, fun). In the human brain, motivated or goal-directed behavior depends on a network of different structures, including the prefrontal cortex, the basal ganglia and the limbic system. Dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with reward processing, plays a central role in coordinating the activity of this network. It structures processing in high-level cognitive areas along a limbic-associative-motor gradient and impacts the learning capabilities of the whole system. In this habilitation thesis, I present biologically-constrained neuro-computational models which investigate the role of dopamine in visual object categorization and memory retrieval (Vitay and Hamker, 2008), reinforcement learning and action selection (Vitay and Hamker, 2010), the updating, learning and maintenance of working memory (Schroll et al., 2012) and timing processes (Vitay and Hamker, 2014). These models outline the many mechanisms by which the dopaminergic system regulates cognitive and emotional behavior: bistable processing modes in the cerebral cortex, modulation of synaptic transmission and plasticity, allocation of cognitive resources and signaling of relevant events. Finally, I present a neural simulator able to simulate a variety of neuro-computational models efficiently on parallel architectures (Vitay et al., 2015). / Neuronale Modelle nach dem Vorbild des Gehirns bieten die Möglichkeit intelligente, kognitive Prozesse nicht nur besser zu verstehen, sondern sie stellen auch eine vielversprechende Lösung dar, um eine Gehirn-ähnliche künstliche Intelligenz für Wahrnehmung und Verhaltensweisen zu erreichen, die mit natürlicher Intelligenz konkurrieren kann. Eine entscheidende Eigenschaft von intelligentem Verhalten ist Motivation, definiert als der Anreiz mit der Welt zu interagieren, um bestimmte Ziele zu erreichen, sei es extrinsisch (Belohnungen wie Nahrung oder Geld zu erhalten oder die Vermeidung von Schmerzen) oder intrinsisch (die Neugier zu befriedigen, Spaß zu haben). Im menschlichen Gehirn basiert motiviertes oder zielgerichtetes Verhalten auf einem Netzwerk von verschiedenen Strukturen, einschließlich des präfrontalen Cortex, der Basalganglien und des limbischen Systems. Dopamin, ein Neurotransmitter, welcher der Belohnungsverarbeitung zugeordnet wird, spielt eine zentrale Rolle bei der Koordination der Aktivität in diesem Netzwerk. Es strukturiert die Verarbeitung in High-Level-kognitiven Bereichen entlang eines limbischen-assoziativ-motor Gradienten und beinflusst die Lernfähigkeit des gesamten Systems. In dieser Habilitation, präsentiere ich biologisch motivierte neuronale Modelle, die die Rolle von Dopamin in der visuellen Objektkategorisierung und Gedächtnisabruf (Vitay and Hamker, 2008), Reinforcement Lernen und Aktionsauswahl (Vitay and Hamker, 2010), Aktualisierung, Lernen und Aufrechterhaltung von Arbeitsgedächtnis (Schroll et al., 2012) und Timing Prozessen (Vitay and Hamker, 2014) untersuchen. Diese Modelle beschreiben Mechanismen, durch die das dopaminerge System kognitives und emotionales Verhalten reguliert: bistabile Verarbeitungsmodi in der Hirnrinde, Plastizität und Modulation der synaptischen Übertragung, Zuweisung von kognitiven Ressourcen und Signalisierung von relevanten Ereignissen. Schließlich beschreibe ich einen neuronalen Simulator, der in in der Lage ist, eine Vielzahl von neuronalen Modellen effizient auf parallelen Architekturen zu simulieren (Vitay et al., 2015).