| Abstract: | We examined preliminarily whether intensive mental activity can transiently enhance higher cognitive functioning in healthy adults. Ten healthy participants performed intensive mental activity for 2 weeks.The intervention entailed daily memorization of multiple prose passages and performance of demanding, speeded mental arithmetic.Neuropsychological testing was conducted before and after the intervention, using alternate forms. (The intervention and neuropsychological tests were different.) Findings in the intervention group were compared to those of a convenience control sample who had performed a near-identical neuropsychological assessment and follow-up in a different study, but who did not perform the intervention.The purpose was to rule out practice effects as the cause of any observed improvement in the intervention group. The intervention group showed improvement on six/eight measures. The non-intervention group showed improvement on only two. Results suggest cognitive capacity can be enhanced in healthy individuals after a period of intensive cognitive stimulation. Implications for rehabilitation are discussed. |
