Picture Recall

This article is for: Virtual Rehab Center (VRC)

SKILL: Memory

DIFFICULTY: 2/5

LEVELS: 12, based on similarity of foils and number of choices

BRIEF RATIONALE: Paying attention to detail and making a mental picture can help you remember.

In Picture Recall, you will study a target picture and identify it after a 5-second delay. Focus on the details and try to form a clear mental image to help you remember it.

HINT: A hint button in the lower-left corner of the screen lets you review the target picture. Using the hint marks the item as incorrect because you did not independently recall the picture after the delay. 

FOR THE CLINICIAN:

Visual attention and visual memory are commonly affected after an acquired brain injury, making it harder to notice and retain important information from the environment (Alnawmasi et al., 2022; L’Ecuyer-Giguère et al., 2019). Because these skills support many everyday activities, targeted practice can help strengthen foundational processes. Because this treatment does not require speech, it's also appropriate for stimulating cognitive skills in individuals with aphasia.

The first step in Picture Recall lets you actively attend to specific details rather than passively taking in the picture as a whole. Directing attention in this way can strengthen long-term retention for the attended features (Fan & Turk-Browne, 2013). This simple strategy can support recall of visual information in everyday life.

During the delay, visualization is introduced as another memory strategy. Visualization involves forming a mental image to help preserve information and support later recall. Internal memory strategies are generally most appropriate for individuals with mild-to-moderate cognitive deficits because they require metacognitive awareness (Velikonja et al., 2023). In this lower-level treatment, however, visualization is introduced in a highly structured manner with repeated practice, allowing patients to build familiarity with the strategy early on.

Selected References:

1. Alnawmasi, M. M., Mani, R., & Khuu, S. K. (2022). Changes in the components of visual attention following traumatic brain injury: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLOS ONE, 17(6).
2. Fan, J. E., & Turk-Browne, N. B. (2013). Internal attention to features in visual short-term memory guides object learning. Cognition, 129(2), 292–308. 
3. L’Ecuyer-Giguère, F., Greffou, S., Tabet, S., Frenette, L. C., Tinawi, S., Feyz, M., & de Guise, E. (2019). Visual memory performance following mild traumatic brain injury and its relationship with intellectual functioning. Applied Neuropsychology: Adult, 27(3), 219–231.
4. Velikonja, D., Ponsford, J., Janzen, S., Harnett, A., Patsakos, E., Kennedy, M., Togher, L., Teasell, R., McIntyre, A., Welch-West, P., Kua, A., & Bayley, M. T. (2023). INCOG 2.0 guidelines for cognitive rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury, part V: Memory. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 38(1), 83–102.