title: An n-back task using vibrotactile stimulation with comparison to an auditory analogue.
abstract: We report a vibrotactile version of the common n-back task used to study working memory. Subjects wore vibrotactile stimulators on three fingers of one hand, and they responded by pressing a button with the other hand whenever the current finger matched the one stimulated n items back. Experiment 1 showed a steep decline in performance as n increased from 1 to 3; each additional level ofn decreased performance by 1.5 d' units on average. Experiment 2 supported a central capacity locus for the vibrotactile task by showing that it correlated strongly with an auditory analogue; both tasks were also related to standard digit span. The vibrotactile version of n-back may be particularly useful in dual-task contexts. It allows the assessment of cognitive capacity in sensory-impaired populations in which touch remains intact, and it may find use in brain-imaging studies in which vibrotactile stimuli impose a memory load.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, USA. klatzky@cmu.edu
authors.forename: Roberta L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Klatzky
authors.forename: Nicholas A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Giudice
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Marston
authors.forename: Jerome
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tietz
authors.forename: Reginald G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Golledge
authors.forename: Jack M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Loomis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005385:Fingers / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology; D010812:Physical Stimulation; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D014110:Touch / Q000502:physiology*; D014732:Vibration