The Effect of Cognitive Style on Individual Differences in Prismatic Adaptation: A Pilot Study

Prism adaptation (PA) is a well-known and widely used technique for rehabilitating unilateral spatial neglect and studying sensory-motor plasticity. However, there is conflicting evidence in the literature regarding its effectiveness which may arise from differences in the type of prisms used, clini...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Brain sciences 2023-04, Vol.13 (4), p.641
Main Authors: Bonavita, Alessia, Bellagamba, Martina, Verde, Paola, Boccia, Maddalena, Guariglia, Cecilia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation
after-effects
Clinical trials
Cognitive ability
Cognitive style
individual differences
Information processing
Neglect syndromes
prism adaptation
Rehabilitation
Response time
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Summary:Prism adaptation (PA) is a well-known and widely used technique for rehabilitating unilateral spatial neglect and studying sensory-motor plasticity. However, there is conflicting evidence in the literature regarding its effectiveness which may arise from differences in the type of prisms used, clinical characteristics of the patients, and the procedure used in training. Individual differences may play a role in PA effectiveness in rehabilitating neglect, affecting both its development and its effects. Field-dependent/independent cognitive style is a pervasive characteristic of individual functioning, affecting how environmental information is processed. Here, we tested the hypothesis that cognitive style plays a role in PA efficacy by submitting to a protocol of prism adaptation to 38 health participants, who were classified as field-dependent (FD, N = 19) or field-independent (FI, N = 19), by using the Embedded Figure Test. Results show that during the exposure phase, FI individuals needed a lesser number of pointing movements to reduce the deviation error than FD individuals. However, there are no differences in the extinction of sensory-motor and cognitive after-effects. These results suggest that prismatic adaptation is affected by individuals' cognitive style since FI individuals will need fewer trials to reach adaptation and this could explain why using this rehabilitation technique with a unique, standard protocol is not always effective.
ISSN:2076-3425
2076-3425
DOI:10.3390/brainsci13040641