Dr Thomas Heffernan Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Northumbria University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
Abstract
Background: Smokers, previous smokers and a never smoked group were compared on a real-world measure of prospective memory (PM – the ability of remembering to carry out a particular action(s) at some future point in time).
Methods: Fourteen current smokers, 17 people who had never smoked and 13 previous smokers were compared using an existing groups design. Scores on a Real World Prospective Memory Task (RWPMT), in which the participant recalled 15 location-action combinations whilst on an actual tour around the university campus, constituted the main dependent measure. Age, gender, smoking and other drug use, levels of anxiety/depression and IQ were also measured as covariates. Anyone using other substance (e.g. cannabis, ecstasy, ‘legal highs’) was excluded from the analysis.
Results: There were no significant between-groups differences on gender, alcohol, anxiety, depression or IQ. A univariate ANCOVA (controlling for age) revealed that both non-smokers and previous smokers recalled significantly more items on the RWPMT when compared with smokers, with no difference between the two former groups.
Conclusions: Existing smokers showed reduced performance on real-world PM when compared to the never smoked group and previous smokers. This suggests that smoking cessation leads to significant improvements in everyday memory, in this case PM.
