Training and transfer effects of working memory updating training in male abstinent long-term methamphetamine users

• Published in: Addictive behaviors reports 2021-12, Vol.14, p.100385-100385, Article 100385
• Main Authors: Zhao, Xin, Wang, Lei, Maes, Joseph H.R.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Methamphetamine addiction; Research paper; Training; Transfer effect; Working memory updating
• ISSN: 2352-8532; 2352-8532
• DOI: 10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100385

•Abstinent methamphetamine inpatients received working memory updating (WMU) training.•An active control group of inpatients was included.•Trained patients showed gain in performance on trained and transfer WMU task.•There was no evidence of far-transfer effects.•Results match those of previous WMU training studies with other (non-)addicted samples. Methamphetamine use is associated with cognitive impairments, including executive functioning. These impairments might be cause and/or effect of the drug (re-)use and have, therefore, motivated interventions to improve cognitive functioning. Until now, only very few studies have examined the effect of training working memory updating (WMU), one of the core executive functions, in this population. In the present study, 32 long-term male abstinent methamphetamine inpatients received either a multiple-session WMU training or an active control treatment. All participants performed a number of tasks assessing WMU, inhibition, and task-switching ability- before and after treatment. The WMU-trained patients improved their performance on the trained task and on a non-trained WMU task, reflecting near transfer. However, there was no beneficial training-induced effect for the other tasks, indicating the absence of far transfer. Possible treatment implications of these findings were discussed.