فصلنامه روانشناسی شناختی

working memory is the comprehensive cognitive system that embedded attentional and memorical mechanisms and therefore can be used in systematic research of cognitive problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive role of working memory capacity and executive functions (shifting, inhibition and updating) for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.  We selected 164 student   (90 male and 74 female)    from university of Tehran with random sampling method  and they completed Maudsley Obsessional – Compulsive Inventory (Hodgson & Rachman, 1977), the Digit Backward Span Task (workingmemory capacity), Forward Span task (Short Term Memory), Stroop (inhibition, Spreen & Strauss, 1998), Set- Switching Task (shifting, Rogers & Monsell, 1995) and Keep Track Task (updating, Martinez, et al., 2011). Data analyzing used regression showed working memory and executive function totally predict considerable amount (67 percent) of obsessive compulsive predisposition. Therefore it can be concluding, obsessive people have crucial weakness in storage, monitoring and executive cognitive function (in general attention control) and we can use training in these functions as treatment strategies.

The crucial difference between people with OCD and non-clinical individuals would be the presence of OCD-related dysfunctional beliefs. compulsions are aimed at undoing the intrusive thoughts.  With respect of core symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder(OCD) deficit in cognitive inhibition is probable. But results are inconsistent in this field. Here researchers are aimed to study the probable IOR deficit in clinical sample of compulsive washing . this study is a causal- comparative research.  Beck Depression Inventory - version II (BDI-II), Obsessional Beliefs Questionnaire- 44 (OBQ-44) and emotional Inhibition of Return test were administered of  47 clinical samples of compulsive washing. The results of MANOVA analysis showed that there is no differences between two groups in IOR (F_(4,42)=-0.578, P=0.735; Wilk’s Lambda= 0.955; Partial η²= 0.045). Moreover there is a significant deference between reaction times in valid and invalid trails  (t= 4.209; P≤0.01) that shows the general IOR phenomena in participants. This research failed to show  cognitive inhibition deficit  in clinical samples of compulsive washing according to their dysfunctional beliefs.IT seems that IOR deficient is not detectable in OCD patients according to exogenous attention. Other theoretical and experimental implications are discussed.