Complementary Correlational Profiles between Slow Wave Brain Oscillations and Working Memory Capacity

Author Info

Eddy J. Davelaar

Corresponding Author

Eddy J. Davelaar
Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK

A B S T R A C T

Working memory involves a range of functions, including maintenance of information and processing that information undisturbed by distraction. Neuroscientific studies have observed critical contributions from frontal and parietal brain regions during processing of cognitive demanding tasks. However, less is known about individual differences in the resting state and their association with working memory capacity. In this study, electrophysiological recordings were taken from thirty volunteers in eyes closed and eyes open conditions after completing the automated version of the operation span task. The results reveal two clusters of correlations: a midline-theta cluster and a parieto-temporal alpha cluster. The theta and alpha clusters have a negative and a positive correlation with operation span performance, respectively. These results are interpreted as individual differences in cognitive preparedness, with the centro-parietal region being critical in switching between outward and inward attention, with the balance of theta and alpha spectral power at Pz indicating to where cognitive resources are directed.

Article Info

Article Type

Research Article

Publication history

Received: Wed 08, Jul 2020
Accepted: Sat 18, Jul 2020
Published: Tue 25, Aug 2020

Copyright

© 2023 Eddy J. Davelaar. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Hosting by Science Repository.
DOI: 10.31487/j.NNB.2020.03.05