Cognitive Processes in the Breakfast Task: Planning and Monitoring
Nathan S. Rose
Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest, Toronto, Canada
Lin Luo and Ellen Bialystok
York University
Alexandra Hering, Karen Lau, and Fergus I. M. Craik
Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest, Toronto, Canada
The Breakfast Task (Craik & Bialystok, 2006) is a computerized task that simulates
the planning and
monitoring requirements involved in cooking breakfast, an everyday activity
important for functional
independence. In Experiment 1, 28 adults performed the Breakfast Task, and outcome
measures were
examined with principal component analysis to elucidate the structure of cognitive
processes underlying
performance. Analyses revealed a 2-component structure which putatively captured
global planning and
local monitoring abilities. In Experiment 2, the structure of Breakfast Task
performance was crossvalidated on a new sample of 59 healthy older adults who also
performed tests assessing working
memory, processing speed, inhibition, reasoning and prospective memory. Factor
analyses showed that
the global planning component from the Breakfast Task was significantly correlated
with individual
differences in executive functions but the local monitoring component was
independent of such functions. The Breakfast Task provides a fast, enjoyable, and
lifelike assessment of complex everyday
planning and monitoring, and their underlying processes such as working memory and
executive
functions.
Keywords: planning, monitoring, working memory, prospective memory, executive
processes
The cognitive processes underlying many everyday activities,
such as running errands, shopping for groceries, or preparing a
meal, are surprisingly complex. To complete such activities it is
necessary to formulate a sequence of actions to achieve the goals,
store and update the action plan in working memory, and consciously monitor and
coordinate the execution of subtasks. These
aspects of cognitive processes are often grouped under the umbrella term planning
(Morris & Ward, 2005). Efficient planning
clearly depends on a multitude of cognitive processes, but the
relative contribution of specific processes is less clear, and their
apparent involvement may depend both on the particular task and
on how planning is assessed.
Laboratory studies investigating planning behaviour typically
adopt one of two general approaches (Ward & Morris, 2005). The
first approach is represented by tower tasks, such as Tower of
Hanoi and its variants (e.g., Owen, 2005), in which participants are
required to solve an unfamiliar problem following a set of restrictions. This
approach has the advantage of experimental control, but
is often criticised for its limited applicability to everyday situations. The
second approach, in contrast, uses tasks in which the
goals and contexts are common in everyday life. Examples of this
method include errand tasks and their variants (Burgess, Simons,
Coates, & Channon, 2005), in which participants are given a series
of tasks to perform in a set order, typically in real-life settings.
This approach has the advantage of better ecological validity, but
the complexity of such tasks reduces the ability to specify the
cognitive components. The present study aims to give a fuller
description of the cognitive processes involved in planning by