Factors of error and effort in memory intervention for patients with Alzheimer's disease and amnesic syndrome

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Factors of error and effort in study conditions play a crucial role in the intervention for memory-impaired individuals. In the present study, efficacy of four study conditions was compared in order to elucidate the optimal study conditions: errorless/errorful and effortless/effortful. METHODS: A total of 18 patients with Alzheimer's disease and 12 patients with amnesic syndrome received study-test sessions under four different study conditions: errorless/errorful and effortless/effortful. RESULTS: The errorless learning advantage was confirmed for both Alzheimer's disease and amnesic syndrome on both free recall and cued recall tests. In contrast, effortful learning was effective only for amnesic syndrome on a free recall test. CONCLUSION: Despite the overall advantage of errorless learning, the effortful process was effective in circumscribed situations.