Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25298292›Full record

SynthesisPsychological science2014

Making working memory work: a meta-analysis of executive-control and working memory training in older adults.

Julia Karbach, Paul Verhaeghen

Open access · greenAbstract readMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Psychological science, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 243 papers, 12 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
243citing papers in PubMed, 12 pooled it
54.3field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

243 citing papers in PubMed, 12 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 587 citations in OpenAlex.

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  13. Trial
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  15. Everyday memory and metacognitive intervention: a randomized controlled trial.Neuropsychology, development, and cognition. Section B, Aging, neuropsychology and cognition · 2025
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  20. Mindful attention promotes control of brain network dynamics for self-regulation and discontinues the past from the present.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2023
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183 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Julia KarbachDepartment of Educational Science, Saarland University j.karbach@mx.uni-saarland.de.
Paul VerhaeghenSchool of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology.
Georgia Institute of Technology · USSaarland University · DE

Funding

SEQUENTIAL/COORDINATIVE COMPLEXITY IN COGNITIVE AGINGR01AG016201 · NIA · SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY · PI VERHAEGHEN, PAUL · 1999 to 2014
$3.6M
Aging and Varieties of Cognitive ControlR56AG016201 · NIA · GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY · PI VERHAEGHEN, PAUL · 2009 to 2009
$370k
NIA NIH HHS AG-16201NIA NIH HHS R01 AG016201NIA NIH HHS R56 AG016201
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This meta-analysis examined the effects of process-based executive-function and working memory training (49 articles, 61 independent samples) in older adults (> 60 years). The interventions resulted in significant effects on performance on the trained task and near-transfer tasks; significant results were obtained for the net pretest-to-posttest gain relative to active and passive control groups and for the net effect at posttest relative to active and passive control groups. Far-transfer effects were smaller than near-transfer effects but were significant for the net pretest-to-posttest gain relative to passive control groups and for the net gain at posttest relative to both active and passive control groups. We detected marginally significant differences in training-induced improvements between working memory and executive-function training, but no differences between the training-induced improvements observed in older adults and younger adults, between the benefits associated with adaptive and nonadaptive training, or between the effects in active and passive control conditions. Gains did not vary with total training time.

Indexed as

AgingExecutive FunctionMemory, Short-TermAgedAged, 80 and overGeriatric AssessmentHumansMiddle Agedcognitive agingcognitive plasticityexecutive-control trainingmeta-analysistransfer of trainingworking memory training

Identifiers

PMID25298292
PMCPMC4381540
OpenAlexW1987007995

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.