TY  - JOUR
A1  - Sarrar, L.
A1  - Warschburger, Petra
A1  - Pfeiffer, E.
A1  - Lehmkuhl, Ulrike
A1  - Schneider, N.
T1  - Cognitive flexibility in adolescent patients with unipolar affective disorders - gender differences
JF  - Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie
N2  - Objective: Several studies have revealed impairments in cognitive functions among patients with affective disorders (AD). However, to date there are few neuropsychological studies on cognitive flexibility among adolescent patients with AD, especially on gender differences in AD. Here, we investigate cognitive functions, especially cognitive flexibility, in adolescent patients with unipolar AD (UAD) compared to a healthy control group (CG). Method: The study population consists of 17 male patients (M-age = 15.4 +/- 1.3) and 22 female patients with UAD (M-age = 15.6 +/- 1.4) as well as 20 male (M-age = 16.0 +/- 1.0) and 30 female (M-age = 15.7 +/- 0.9) healthy adolescents. A neuropsychological test battery was conducted, and depressive symptoms, psychological stress, and intelligence were also assessed. Results: The analyses revealed no significant group differences regarding cognitive flexibility or visual processing speed, albeit slight better performance in motor processing speed for the CG. Furthermore, no gender differences were observed regarding cognitive flexibility, though female subjects general displayed better performance in processing speed. Conclusions: Overall, there are no indications for serious deficits and specific gender differences in cognitive flexibility or processing speed in adolescent patients with UAD. Independent of psychological distress, female subjects seem to have some advantages in processing speed.
KW  - cognitive flexibility
KW  - unipolar affective disorders
KW  - sex differences
KW  - adolescents
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1024/1422-4917/a000240
SN  - 1422-4917
VL  - 41
IS  - 4
SP  - 261
EP  - 270
PB  - Hogrefe
CY  - Bern
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Pliatsikas, Christos
A1  - Verissimo, Joao Marques
A1  - Babcock, Laura
A1  - Pullman, Mariel Y.
A1  - Glei, Dana A.
A1  - Weinstein, Maxine
A1  - Goldman, Noreen
A1  - Ullman, Michael T.
T1  - Working memory in older adults declines with age, but is modulated by sex and education
JF  - The quarterly journal of experimental psychology
N2  - Working memory (WM), which underlies the temporary storage and manipulation of information, is critical for multiple aspects of cognition and everyday life. Nevertheless, research examining WM specifically in older adults remains limited, despite the global rapid increase in human life expectancy. We examined WM in a large sample (N=754) of healthy older adults (aged 58-89) in a non-Western population (Chinese speakers) in Taiwan, on a digit n-back task. We tested not only the influence of age itself and of load (1-back vs. 2-back) but also the effects of both sex and education, which have been shown to modulate WM abilities. Mixed-effects regression revealed that, within older adulthood, age negatively impacted WM abilities (with linear, not nonlinear, effects), as did load (worse performance at 2-back). In contrast, education level was positively associated with WM. Moreover, both age and education interacted with sex. With increasing age, males showed a steeper WM decline than females; with increasing education, females showed greater WM gains than males. Together with other findings, the evidence suggests that age, sex, and education all impact WM in older adults, but interact in particular ways. The results have both basic research and translational implications and are consistent with particular benefits from increased education for women.
KW  - Ageing
KW  - sex differences
KW  - education
KW  - working memory
KW  - n back
Y1  - 2018
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1177/1747021818791994
SN  - 1747-0218
SN  - 1747-0226
VL  - 72
IS  - 6
SP  - 1308
EP  - 1327
PB  - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
CY  - Abingdon
ER  -