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According to the executive framework of prospective memory (PM), age-related differences in PM performance are mediated by age-related differences in executive functioning (EF). The present study further explored this framework by examining which specific components of EF are associated with PM differences between and within three age groups. A group of children (7-9 years; N = 108), adolescents (12-14 years; N = 112), and adults (17-23 years; N = 106) performed focal- and non-focal event-based PM (EBPM) tasks, a time-based PM (TBPM) task, and tasks measuring EF components. Differences between age groups in focal EBPM, non-focal EBPM, and TBPM performance were mediated by, respectively, differences in interference control and response inhibition, performance on the ongoing task, and differences in working memory and response inhibition. However, within-age group analyses only revealed WM updating as significant predictor of TBPM performance in the adolescent group. These results support and further qualify the executive framework of PM. The differences in outcome dependent on the examined age range might be important for explaining mixed results of previous studies regarding the precise EF components underlying age-related PM task performance differences.

Training and transfer effects of prospective memory training have not been assessed in healthy young adults yet. The present study examined the effects of an 8-day prospective memory training programme using the Virtual Week computer game in 18-24-year-old students. Using the performance of an active control group as comparison, the study revealed a significant short-lived beneficial training-induced effect on a nearest-transfer task consisting of a different version of the trained task. No evidence was obtained for transfer effects to other tasks measuring prospective memory (near transfer), or to tasks measuring various executive functions or general intelligence (far transfer). These results were compared to those from a previous study in which an identical training and testing protocol was used in 13-15-year-old adolescents. This study did reveal some evidence of near and far transfer. The results of the two studies combined suggest a greater potential for prospective memory training to induce beneficial transfer effects in young adolescents than in young adults.

Prospective memory (PM) plays a crucial role in children's academic achievement and interpersonal relationships. However, there is a lack of studies exploring training and transfer effects of process-based PM training in healthy young adolescents. In the current study, 13- to 15-year-old children participated in an 8-day PM training program using the Virtual Week computer game. Transfer of training benefits was measured using other PM tasks (near transfer) and tasks measuring various aspects of executive function (EF) and general intelligence (far transfer). An active control group was used as comparison to assess transfer effects immediately after training and 3 and/or 6 months after training. After training, the trained children performed better on the trained PM task than the control children, and this benefit was still present after 6 months. Significant training-induced positive transfer was observed in tasks measuring time-based PM and working memory updating, although the benefits were rather short-lived. No differential, training-induced benefits were found for any of the other transfer tasks. These results suggest some limited potential of PM training to enhance some aspects of PM memory and EF in young adolescents., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)