Improving everyday prospective memory performance in older adults: Comparing cognitive process and strategy training

Considering the importance of prospective memory for independence in old age recently, research has started to examine interventions to reduce prospective memory errors. Two general approaches can be proposed: (a) process training of executive control associated with prospective memory functioning, and/or (b) strategy training to reduce executive task demands. The present study was the first to combine and compare both training methods in a sample of 62 community-dwelling older adults (60–86 years) and to explore their effects on an ecologically valid everyday life prospective memory task (here: regular blood pressure monitoring). Even though the training of executive control was successful in enhancing the trained ability, clear transfer effects on prospective memory performance could only be found for the strategy training. However, participants with low executive abilities benefited particularly from the implementation intention strategy. Conceptually, this supports models suggesting interactions between task demands and individual differences in executive control in explaining individual differences in prospective memory performance

Krankheit und Krankheitsmanagement

Krankheit im Alter zeichnet sich durch Multimorbidität und Chronizität aus. Demnach leiden ältere Erwachsene häufig an mehreren Erkrankungen, bei denen keine vollständige Heilung zu erwarten ist und die umfassende psychische Anpassungen sowie Veränderungen des Lebensstils erfordern. Daher kommt der aktiven Mitarbeit der Patienten im Krankheitsmanagement besondere Bedeutung zu. Diese wird u.a. von den Ressourcen einer Person, der Krankheits- und Therapieerfahrung, sich daraus ergebenden krankheits- und therapiebezogenen Einstellungen sowie der Unterstützung durch das soziale Umfeld beeinflusst. Innerhalb der Ressourcen sind im höheren Erwachsenenalter die kognitiven Ressourcen einer Person ein wichtiger, aber eher vernachlässigter Faktor. Diese moderieren das aktive Krankheitsmanagement insofern, als sie einerseits den Rahmen für das Verständnis komplexer krankheitsbezogener Detailinformationen und der sich daraus ergebenden Therapiemaßnahmen geben, andererseits notwendige Grundlage für die erfolgreiche Ausführung dieser Maßnahmen sin

Fluid mechanics moderate the effect of implementation intentions on a health prospective memory task in older adults

The aim of the present study was to test if a cognitive strategy improves older adults’ prospective memory performance in a naturalistic health task. Moreover, it was tested if a possible strategy effect is moderated by individual differences. Therefore, a group of older adults was asked to perform a task taken from the medication adherence literature (i.e., blood pressure monitoring). Half of them were asked to form implementation intentions. Additionally, crystallized pragmatics and fluid mechanics, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, and lifestyle factors were assessed as possible moderators. Results showed a strong positive strategy effect on prospective memory. Moreover, the effect was qualified by a significant interaction and only emerged for participants with low levels in fluid mechanics. No other moderator showed an effect. In conclusion, an enhancing effect of implementation intentions on prospective memory seems to be dependent on individual differences in cognitive capacity and less related to key motivational or personality variables

Precision measurement of the structure of the CMS inner tracking system using nuclear interactions

The structure of the CMS inner tracking system has been studied using nuclear interactions of hadrons striking its material. Data from proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded in 2015 at the LHC are used to reconstruct millions of secondary vertices from these nuclear interactions. Precise positions of the beam pipe and the inner tracking system elements, such as the pixel detector support tube, and barrel pixel detector inner shield and support rails, are determined using these vertices. These measurements are important for detector simulations, detector upgrades, and to identify any changes in the positions of inactive elements

Description and performance of track and primary-vertex reconstruction with the CMS tracker

A description is provided of the software algorithms developed for the CMS tracker both for reconstructing charged-particle trajectories in proton-proton interactions and for using the resulting tracks to estimate the positions of the LHC luminous region and individual primary-interaction vertices. Despite the very hostile environment at the LHC, the performance obtained with these algorithms is found to be excellent. For tbar t events under typical 2011 pileup conditions, the average track-reconstruction efficiency for promptly-produced charged particles with transverse momenta of p(T) > 0.9GeV is 94% for pseudorapidities of |η| < 0.9 and 85% for 0.9 < |η| < 2.5. The inefficiency is caused mainly by hadrons that undergo nuclear interactions in the tracker material. For isolated muons, the corresponding efficiencies are essentially 100%. For isolated muons of p(T) = 100GeV emitted at |η| < 1.4, the resolutions are approximately 2.8% in p(T), and respectively, 10μm and 30μm in the transverse and longitudinal impact parameters. The position resolution achieved for reconstructed primary vertices that correspond to interesting pp collisions is 10–12μm in each of the three spatial dimensions. The tracking and vertexing software is fast and flexible, and easily adaptable to other functions, such as fast tracking for the trigger, or dedicated tracking for electrons that takes into account bremsstrahlung