Computerized cognitive training produces a small but statistically significant improvement in cognitive performance in healthy older adults¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r3 · q4 · i1 small
Currency · newest study 2014 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q4 i1 Across 52 RCTs, CCT versus control yielded a small significant pooled effect (g = 0.22, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.29) after removal of one outlier. → Lampit A 2014

Evidence¶

Lampit A 2014¶

Lampit A, Hallock H, Valenzuela M (2014) Computerized Cognitive Training in Cognitively Healthy Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Effect Modifiers. PLoS Med 11(11): e1001756. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001756

q4 · i1 · quant-synthesis · r3

Random-effects meta-analysis of 52 RCTs (4,885 participants) of at least 4 h of CCT in healthy older adults, after removing one implausible outlier. The pooled effect was "g = 0.22, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.29" with low heterogeneity (I2 = 29.92%) and no significant funnel-plot asymmetry.

"Following this, heterogeneity reduced to a low level, and the summary effect size was reduced (g = 0.22, 95% CI 0.15 to 0.29, p,0.001; I2 = 29.92%, 95% CI 0.63% to 50.57%; Figure 2)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• CCT yields small significant gains in nonverbal memory, working memory, and visuospatial skills, but only weak evidence for verbal memory — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Group-based CCT is effective while home-based CCT is not — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• CCT shows no significant effects on executive functions or attention in healthy older adults — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• CCT improves processing speed with a moderate effect, the largest domain effect, though with large heterogeneity — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Training more than three sessions per week neutralizes CCT efficacy, while one or 2–3 sessions per week are effective — related
• Working-memory-only training shows no positive evidence of efficacy in healthy older adults — related
• Brain games produce statistically significant cognitive performance gains in older adults, but gains are modest and do not detect improvements over control tasks or produce far transfer — related
• Speed-of-processing training based on UFOV tasks reduces minimum duration thresholds in older adults, with benefits persisting up to two years — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Training benefits did not extend to processing speed tasks, indicating specificity to cognitive control processes — related