ArticleNeuroImage2020
Exploring brain-behavior relationships in the N-back task.
Article in NeuroImage, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers.
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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.
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Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed.
- Investigating enhancement of learning and memory following supplementation with Juice PlusEuropean journal of nutrition · 2026Trial
- Moxibustion modulates working memory in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study.Journal of traditional Chinese medicine = Chung i tsa chih ying wen pan · 2023Trial
- Using connectome-based models of working memory to predict emotion regulation in older adults.Social cognitive and affective neuroscience · 2023Trial
- Executive Function-Related Improvements on a Commercial CBT-Based Weight Management Intervention: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Trial
- Network activation and its association with perceived stress underlie performance under stressful high demand.Neurobiology of stress · 2026Article
- Exploring the relationship between auditory processing characteristics and cognition in preschool children with developmental language disorder based on fNIRS.Journal of neurodevelopmental disorders · 2026Article
- Cortical activation during auditory working memory varies with hearing aid use status in age-related hearing loss.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Intracortical BCI Performance is Robust to Changes in Attentional Load During Dual-Tasking.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Executive Dysfunction and Depression Risk in Adolescence: Functional-MRI Analysis of Transient Network States During a Working Memory Task.Clinical psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science · 2026Article
- Executive resources shape the impact of language predictability across the adult lifespan.eLife · 2026Article
- Orthogonal-Rotational Dynamics Supports Efficient Encoding and Updating for Streaming Information in Working Memory.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026Article
- Integrated Blood Biomarker and Neurobehavioural Signatures of Latent Neuroinjury in Experienced Military Breachers Exposed to Repetitive Low-Intensity Blast.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Differential Transfer Effects Across Tasks in Younger and Older Adults Following Executive Function Training.Journal of cognitive enhancement : towards the integration of theory and practice · 2026Article
- Feasibility of fNIRS for assessing n-back task-related prefrontal cortex oxygenation after continuous cycling at varying intensities: an evaluation of protocol feasibility.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026Article
- Disentangling metabolic and neurovascular timescales supporting cognitive processes.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Functional near-infrared spectroscopy short-channel regression improves cortical activation estimates of working memory load.Neurophotonics · 2025Article
- The Neurobiology of Cognitive Fatigue and Its Influence on Effort-Based Choice.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2025Article
- Effective Motor Skill Learning Induces Inverted-U Load-Dependent Activation in Contralateral Pre-Motor and Supplementary Motor Area.Human brain mapping · 2025Article
- Spatiotemporal survival analysis for movement trajectory tracking in virtual reality.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Tale of Two n-Backs: Diverging Associations of Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Activation With n-Back Task Performance.Journal of neuroscience research · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Working memory (WM) function has traditionally been investigated in terms of two dimensions: within-individual effects of WM load, and between-individual differences in task performance. In human neuroimaging studies, the N-back task has frequently been used to study both. A reliable finding is that activation in frontoparietal regions exhibits an inverted-U pattern, such that activity tends to decrease at high load levels. Yet it is not known whether such U-shaped patterns are a key individual differences factor that can predict load-related changes in task performance. The current study investigated this question by manipulating load levels across a much wider range than explored previously (N = 1-6), and providing a more comprehensive examination of brain-behavior relationships. In a sample of healthy young adults (n = 57), the analysis focused on a distinct region of left lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) identified in prior work to show a unique relationship with task performance and WM function. In this region it was the linear slope of load-related activity, rather than the U-shaped pattern, that was positively associated with individual differences in target accuracy. Comprehensive supplemental analyses revealed the brain-wide selectivity of this pattern. Target accuracy was also independently predicted by the global resting-state connectivity of this LPFC region. These effects were robust, as demonstrated by cross-validation analyses and out-of-sample prediction, and also critically, were primarily driven by the high-load conditions. Together, the results highlight the utility of high-load conditions for investigating individual differences in WM function.
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Registered trials
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.