As I mentioned in Neuroscience Conference 2007, we recently presented evidence that the Lumosity application is not only an effective way to improve cognition, but it is also a useful platform for conducting basic research. The following is an abridged version of the “lay language summary” the Society for Neuroscience asked us to provide for the science press. The summary was co-authored by Lizzie Buchen, one of our science advisors.
Using the Web for Behavioral Research and Intervention: Evidence from Cognitive Training
We have found that a web-based application can be used to efficiently perform human behavioral intervention, and may provide a powerful platform for conducting large-scale human cognition experiments. In a test experiment, subjects who participated in a 30-day online cognitive training program, “Lumosity,” significantly improved in measures of memory and attention. Importantly, the web-based format allowed us to perform the intervention entirely over the internet, including subject recruitment, behavioral testing and training, and data collection and analysis.
After validating the efficacy of the training program and its feasibility as a research platform, we launched collaborations with other human behavior researchers interested in this novel form of intervention. Because the platform is substantially cheaper and less resource-intensive than non-web-based interventions, and its accessibility can improve subjects’ enjoyment and compliance, we found it in high demand among cognitive scientists. These experiments are currently in progress. (continued…)
To our knowledge, this is the first successful use of the internet for conducting a long-term behavioral intervention of this scale, and for evaluating its effectiveness. Previous attempts at web-based intervention by others have been unsuccessful due to low compliance. We addressed this issue by structuring our cognitive exercises as engaging games to encourage consistent, long-term usage.
In our test experiment, 72% of the people who began the experiment completed the initial battery of assessments, the training program (consisting of 30 20-minute visits to the website), and a follow-up assessment. Following training, subjects scored significantly better than controls on a number of cognitive tests, including working memory
and visual attention. Should further evaluation of this intervention demonstrate significant benefits, its easy accessibility will facilitate a wide-ranging impact on society.
We are currently building upon our basic research platform to make it more useful to other researchers, confident that our application can expedite the pace of cognitive science research. Traditional in-lab experiments on humans have a number of formidable limitations, including requiring significant amounts of time and resources, limitations on the number and variety of subjects, and relative inaccessibility of the lab itself. These issues are further compounded in ongoing experiments that require several sessions.
Our research shows that the Web may be a viable alternative that addresses these limitations. Although simple web-based psychology experiments, such as surveys, are becoming somewhat common, more dynamic tests of cognition, such as attention and reaction time, are less available. Conducting large-scale human cognition experiments is
more efficient with this platform because it automates much of the work and resources required, making large experiments faster and easier for both researchers and subjects. By increasing the sample size, potentially by orders of magnitude, web-based experiments may provide a unique opportunity for cognitive scientists to observe more subtle cognitive differences than had previously been evident.
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