Conflict-Related Brain Activity after Individualized Cognitive Training in Preschoolers from Poor Homes

Abstract

Different interventions have shown effectiveness in modifying cognitive performance on cognitive control demanding tasks in children from poor homes. However, little is known about the influence of cognitive interventions on children’s brain functioning and how individual variability modulates the impact of those interventions. In the present study, we examined the impact of two individualized cognitive training interventions on cognitive performance and neural activity in preschoolers from poor homes. Participants were classified based on their basal performance (i.e., high and low performers) in an inhibitory control task and then separated into intervention and control groups within each performance level. The control groups completed an intervention with three activities without cognitive control demands. The intervention groups performed three training activities with increased cognitive demands adjusted according to their cognitive baseline performance. Children were trained weekly for 12 weeks and tested before and after the intervention, at kindergarten, using EEG recordings during a Go/NoGo task performance. Results revealed significant training effects on midfrontal neural activity associated with conflict processing in both intervention groups. Low performers exhibited changes on preresponse conflict processing (i.e., N2). However, the high-performing group had larger training effects on both conflict-related activity (i.e., N2, ERN, and theta power) and fluid intelligence. These results suggest that the consideration of individual differences in the design of interventions could contribute to the adaptation of training demands and that the use of mobile EEG technology could be useful to assess eventual neural markers in more ecological contexts.