Recall the Game

Name: Recall the Game
Author: University of California, Riverside

University of California, Riverside

CLINICAL GRADE

Studied in clinical trials · Mixed evidence

For:General Public & Enthusiasts

Free

Download on the App Store

App Summary

Recall the Game is a cognitive training app for the general public that uses an engaging, game-based version of the 'N-back' task to improve working memory. The app's scientific basis is the N-back paradigm, for which an analysis of three randomized controlled trials (N=460) found that improvements in broader reasoning skills depend on first improving performance on related working memory tasks. The associated research concludes that integrating principles from game design and cognitive science may create more effective interventions, with benefits for reasoning being linked to the user's improvement on the core memory task.

App Screenshots

Detailed Description

Functionality & Mechanism

Developed by the University of California Riverside Brain Game Center, this application implements a validated cognitive N-back task within an engaging runner-style game interface. The system presents a continuous sequence of visual signals, requiring the user to identify and collect items that match one presented 'N' positions previously. Session difficulty adapts dynamically by increasing the N-back value and pace, systematically challenging the user's working memory capacity through a gamified training paradigm.

Evidence & Research Context

The app's design is informed by research integrating principles from perceptual learning and computer science to enhance user engagement and promote plasticity in working memory systems.
Evidence for the underlying N-back paradigm, including a synthesis of three randomized controlled trials (N=460 total), indicates that performance gains on similar, untrained tasks (near transfer) mediate transfer to domains like fluid reasoning.
Meta-analytic evidence cited in the foundational research demonstrates that N-back training produces consistent improvements in working memory performance on lab-based assessments.

Intended Use & Scope

This application is intended for the general public as an accessible cognitive training tool. Its primary utility is to provide repeated, engaging practice of a working memory task. It is not a diagnostic instrument or a clinical treatment for memory impairment or other cognitive disorders. Individuals with concerns about memory function should consult a qualified healthcare provider.

Studies & Publications

2 publications

Peer-reviewed research associated with this app.

RCT

Near transfer to an unrelated N-back task mediates the effect of N-back working memory training on matrix reasoning

Pahor et al. (2022) · Nature Human Behaviour

Training improved performance on similar tasks but did not improve reasoning ability in two of three trials.

The extent to which working memory training improves performance on untrained tasks is highly controversial. Here we address this controversy by testing the hypothesis that far transfer may depend on near transfer using mediation models in three separate randomized controlled trials (RCTs). In all three RCTs, totalling 460 individuals, performance on untrained N-back tasks (near transfer) mediated transfer to Matrix Reasoning (representing far transfer) despite the lack of an intervention effect in RCTs 2 and 3. Untrained N-back performance also mediated transfer to a working memory composite, which showed a significant intervention effect (RCT 3). These findings support a model of N-back training in which transfer to untrained N-back tasks gates further transfer (at least in the case of working memory at the construct level) and Matrix Reasoning. This model can help adjudicate between the many studies and meta-analyses of working memory training that have provided mixed results but have not examined the relationship between near and far transfer on an individual-differences level. Pahor et al. find evidence across three experiments that the extent to which people improve in matrix reasoning as a result of N-back training is associated with their degree of improvement on working memory tasks similar to the training task.

Non-Evaluative Reference

How to build better memory training games

Deveau et al. (2015) · Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience

Referenced in academic literature; no direct evaluation of the app

Can we create engaging training programs that improve working memory (WM) skills? While there are numerous procedures that attempt to do so, there is a great deal of controversy regarding their efficacy. Nonetheless, recent meta-analytic evidence shows consistent improvements across studies on lab-based tasks generalizing beyond the specific training effects (Au et al., 2014; Karbach & Verhaeghen, 2014), however, there is little research into how WM training aids participants in their daily life. Here we propose that incorporating design principles from the fields of Perceptual Learning and Computer Science might augment the efficacy of WM training, and ultimately lead to greater learning and transfer. In particular, the field of perceptual learning has identified numerous mechanisms (including attention, reinforcement, multisensory facilitation and multi-stimulus training) that promote brain plasticity. Also, computer science has made great progress in the scientific approach to game design that can be used to create engaging environments for learning. We suggest that approaches integrating knowledge across these fields may lead to a more effective WM interventions and better reflect real world conditions.

In the Media

Who benefits from brain training and why?

UC Riverside and UC Irvine psychologists developed research using "Recall the Game" to solve the debate over brain training effectiveness, examining whether people who show "near transfer" skills are more likely to achieve "far transfer" benefits. "Some people do very well in training, such as playing a video game, but they don't show near transfer perhaps because they are using highly specific strategies," said first author Anja Pahor. The researchers conducted three randomized control trials involving nearly 500 participants and found that improvement on untrained tasks determines whether far transfer to abstract reasoning is successful.

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Building games to train the brain

Aaron Seitz, PhD, director of the Brain Game Center for Mental Fitness and Well-Being at UC Riverside, developed scientifically rigorous brain training games to address the mixed results in cognitive training research, applying principles from perceptual learning. "I wanted to take what I knew from perceptual learning and apply it to a training program that's meant to help people in their daily lives," Seitz explains of how the Brain Game Center began. In collaboration with UC Irvine, Seitz is recruiting 30,000 volunteers for an NIMH-funded memory study to explore what elements of brain-training interventions might improve memory.

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Nationwide project seeks to understand how brain exercises produce cognitive benefits

UC Riverside's Brain Game Center developed "Recall the Game" to understand how memory training produces cognitive benefits, launching a nationwide project funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. The study aims to engage 30,000 people in different variants of memory training, with researcher Aaron Seitz stating, "We want to understand which training approaches lead to what types of benefits in different individuals." The large-scale project seeks to resolve scientific controversies surrounding brain training effectiveness and explore personalized cognitive training approaches.

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