Everyday Memory Intervention (EMMI)

Enhancing Older Adults' Everyday Memory Function

Evaluates an intervention designed to improve everyday memory function, contrasting people receiving the intervention with a group that receives traditional memory strategy training.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Aging
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Everyday Metacognitive Memory Intervention; Behavioral: Memory Strategy Control Intervention

Detailed Description

This project seeks to develop and validate a novel approach to training everyday memory functioning in older adults. The approach (1) trains people to use simple but effective memory skills that have broad applicability in everyday life and (2) shapes a set of skills and habits of mind that will increase the likelihood of effective use of skills and memory aids. It is based on a metacognitive perspective on self-regulation in cognitively demanding situations and informed by recent theories about how suboptimal habit patterns can be altered. The approach has not yet been used in an everyday memory intervention in high-functioning, community-dwelling older adults. The proposed research validates ecological momentary assessment methods to get actual behavioral measures of forgetting in everyday life. It then uses these procedures in a randomized experiment that contrasts the everyday memory intervention group with a traditional memory-strategy training group. The hypothesis is that the everyday memory training intervention will reduce everyday memory errors and memory complaints, whereas the memory strategy training will alter strategy use and memory performance, with little cross-over effect. The hypothesized pattern will establish the explicit benefits of our everyday memory intervention procedures and demonstrate the limitation of standard memory training for that purpose.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 68
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Georgia
    • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30332
      • Adult Cognition Lab

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 70 years to 85 years (Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 70 - 85 years of age
• in fair to good health
• free of major neurocognitive impairment
• English speaking
• endorsed Smartphone and computer users (or willing to learn)

Exclusion Criteria:

• diagnosis of any major neurological problems (e.g. stroke, Parkinson's disease, dementia)
• 1.5 SD below age-normed mean (or lower) on the TICS
• low computer and smart phone literacy
• and poor self-rated health.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Everyday Metacognitive Memory; Training in techniques for managing memory demands in everyday life	Behavioral: Everyday Metacognitive Memory Intervention; Provides training in use of techniques and procedures to enhance proactive self-regulatory control over everyday memory demands, including strategies for learning information, planning for meeting everyday goals, and monitoring of efficacy of goal pursuit.
Active Comparator: Memory Strategy Control; Trains the use of memory strategies for learning new associations and concepts	Behavioral: Memory Strategy Control Intervention; Trains use of standard mnemonic techniques such as imagery and sentence generation for learning new associations and organizational and distinctiveness-based strategies for learning sets of items (e.g., word lists).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Everyday Memory Failures	Across the data collection period, participants audio recorded descriptions of their memory failures on a smartphone app. The audio recordings were transcribed and then cleaned and qualitatively coded so that the number of memory failures each participant reported during the data collection period could be counted. The data was qualitatively coded to ensure an accurate count of the number of memory failures per participant without counting duplicate events or accidental reports. Average daily number of reported memory failures from EMA & daily diaries is reported.	minimum 8 day period after training on app prior to posttest
Prospective Memory Lab Contacts	Number of successfully completed lab contacts (maximum of 4)	Two weeks prior to posttest
Prospective Memory Lab Contact Efficiency	median absolute time deviation (in minutes) from scheduled lab contact for completed contacts	Two weeks prior to posttest
Everyday Cognition Simulation Task: ATM Task (Number of Errors)	Computerized task to simulate use of an ATM machine. Measure: number of errors	posttest only
Czaja Everyday Cognition Simulation Task: Prescription Refill Task (Number of Errors)	Computerized task to simulate use of an automated telephone program to refill prescriptions. Measure: Number of errors	posttest only
Free Recall Test	Computerized task to present 30 concrete nouns, 6 from 5 taxonomic categories (Hultsch, Hertzog, Dixon, & Small, 1998) Measure is proportion of 30 words recalled	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
Associative Recall Test	Computerized task to present 40 concrete-concrete associatively unrelated noun pairs (Hertzog, Sinclair, & Dunlosky, 2010) Outcome is proportion of 40 words correctly recalled.	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
Story Recall	gist recall of narrative story (total number of propositions (ideas) from story recalled)	posttest only
Everyday Cognition Simulation Task: ATM Task (Time in Seconds)	Computerized task to simulate use of an ATM machine. Measure: time to complete task (in seconds)	posttest only
Czaja Everyday Cognition Simulation Task: Prescription Refill Task (Time in Seconds)	Computerized task to simulate use of an automated telephone program to refill prescriptions. Measure: time to complete task (in seconds)	posttest only

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
MFQ Memory Complaint (Frequency of Forgetting Scale)	Summative Likert scale measuring frequency of reported memory problems for specific types of problems Measure is average item Likert rating on a 1-7 scale. Higher score indicates fewer memory problems	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
PBMI Specific Memory Self-Efficacy	The Personal Beliefs about Memory Instruments (PBMI) Specific Memory Self-Efficacy measurement is a summative visual analog rating scale measuring self-rated memory aggregated over multiple specific types of memory. Outcomes scaled in average proportion of distance from left (0) to maximum of 1.00 (higher scores indicate greater memory self-efficacy).	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
PBMI Memory Control	Summative visual analog rating scale measuring self-rated control over everyday. Outcome is scaled as average proportion of maximum endorsement (ranging from 0 to 1.0, with higher scores indicate greater perceived control)	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
MCQ Internal Scale	Summative Likert scale obtaining self-rated frequency of use of internal mnemonic strategies in everyday life. Average Likert rating on 1-5 scale (higher scores indicate greater use of strategies)	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)
MCQ External	Summative Likert scale obtaining self-rated frequency of use of external memory aids. Outcome is scaled as average Likert rating on 1-5 scale. Higher score indicates greater use of external aids.	pretest and posttest (approximately 1 month lag)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Georgia Institute of Technology
• Collaborators: National Institute on Aging (NIA)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Christopher Hertzog, Ph.D, Georgia Institute of Technology

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Bottiroli S, Cavallini E, Dunlosky J, Vecchi T, Hertzog C. The importance of training strategy adaptation: a learner-oriented approach for improving older adults' memory and transfer. J Exp Psychol Appl. 2013 Sep;19(3):205-18. doi: 10.1037/a0034078. Epub 2013 Aug 26.
• Bailey H, Dunlosky J, Hertzog C. Metacognitive training at home: does it improve older adults' learning? Gerontology. 2010;56(4):414-20. doi: 10.1159/000266030. Epub 2009 Dec 11.
• Bailey HR, Dunlosky J, Hertzog C. Does strategy training reduce age-related deficits in working memory? Gerontology. 2014;60(4):346-56. doi: 10.1159/000356699. Epub 2014 Feb 27.
• Bottiroli S, Cavallini E, Dunlosky J, Vecchi T, Hertzog C. Self-guided strategy-adaption training for older adults: Transfer effects to everyday tasks. Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2017 Sep;72:91-98. doi: 10.1016/j.archger.2017.05.015. Epub 2017 Jun 7.
• Dunlosky J, Cavallini E, Roth H, McGuire CL, Vecchi T, Hertzog C. Do self-monitoring interventions improve older adult learning? J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2007 Jun;62 Spec No 1:70-6. doi: 10.1093/geronb/62.special_issue_1.70.
• Dunlosky J, Hertzog C. Measuring strategy production during associative learning: the relative utility of concurrent versus retrospective reports. Mem Cognit. 2001 Mar;29(2):247-53. doi: 10.3758/bf03194918.
• Dunlosky, J., Hertzog, C., Kennedy, M. R. T., & Thiede, K. W. (2005). The self-monitoring approach for effective learning. Cognitive Technology, 10, 4-11.
• Dunlosky J, Kubat-Silman AK, Hertzog C. Training monitoring skills improves older adults' self-paced associative learning. Psychol Aging. 2003 Jun;18(2):340-5. doi: 10.1037/0882-7974.18.2.340.
• Hertzog C, McGuire CL, Horhota M, Jopp D. Does believing in "use it or lose it" relate to self-rated memory control, strategy use, and recall? Int J Aging Hum Dev. 2010;70(1):61-87. doi: 10.2190/AG.70.1.c.
• Hertzog C, Sinclair SM, Dunlosky J. Age differences in the monitoring of learning: cross-sectional evidence of spared resolution across the adult life span. Dev Psychol. 2010 Jul;46(4):939-48. doi: 10.1037/a0019812.
• Hertzog C, Dunlosky J. Metacognition in Later Adulthood: Spared Monitoring Can Benefit Older Adults' Self-regulation. Curr Dir Psychol Sci. 2011 Jun;20(3):167-173. doi: 10.1177/0963721411409026.
• Hertzog C, Lineweaver TT, Hines JC. Computerized assessment of age differences in memory beliefs. Percept Mot Skills. 2014 Oct;119(2):609-28. doi: 10.2466/03.10.PMS.119c23z4. Epub 2014 Sep 26.
• Hertzog C, Lustig E, Pearman A, Waris A. Behaviors and Strategies Supporting Everyday Memory in Older Adults. Gerontology. 2019;65(4):419-429. doi: 10.1159/000495910. Epub 2019 Feb 8.
• Lineweaver, T. T., & Hertzog, C. (1998). Adults' efficacy and control beliefs regarding memory and aging: Separating general from personal beliefs. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition 5, 264-296. doi: 10.1076/anec.5.4.264.771

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 15, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 10, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): December 10, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 11, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 11, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): September 12, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 1, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 3, 2024
• Last Verified: April 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: metacognition; ecological momentary assessment; memory complaint; everyday memory; mnemonics; external aids
• Other Study ID Numbers: H19341; 1R21AG059942-01A1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No