Sequential attributional feedback and children's achievement behaviors.

Determined how the sequence of ability and effort attributional feedback influenced task motivation, attributions for success, self-efficacy, and skillful performance in 80 elementary school Ss (aged 8 yrs 2 mo to 10 yrs 5 mo) in 2 experiments. In Exp I, 40 Ss lacking subtraction skills received training and problem-solved over 4 sessions. During the problem solving, Group 1 (ability-ability) periodically received ability feedback; Group 2 (effort-effort) received little effort feedback; Group 3 (ability-effort) was given ability feedback during the 1st 2 sessions and effort feedback during the last 2; Group 4 (effort-ability) had this sequence reversed. In Exp II, 40 Ss (chosen with the same criteria as in Exp I) followed the same procedures except they were asked about their perceptions of success or failure following training. Results for both experiments show that Ss in Groups 1 and 3 developed higher ability attributions, self-efficacy, and subtraction skills compared with Ss in Groups 2 and 4. The sequence of attributional feedback did not differentially affect motivation, effort attributions, or perceptions of training successes. (42 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of role-taking skills in young children.

A role-taking hierarchy was developed based on analysis of the H. Borke (see record 1972-00686-001), the N. Burns and L. Cavey (1957), and the M. J. Chandler and S. Greenspan (see record 1973-02093-001) role-taking tasks, and on 2 new tasks constructed by the authors, all of which deal with the same affective content. Tasks were presented to 7 girls and 7 boys in each of 3 age groups (3 yrs 0 mo to 3 yrs 11 mo, 4 yrs 0 mo to 4 yrs 11 mo, and 5 yrs 0 mo to 5 yrs 11 mo). Data were analyzed by a scalogram and a cluster analysis. The hypothesis that these tasks would form a hierarchy such that the skills needed for the early tasks are logically prerequisite to those needed for the later tasks was supported. A fundamental structural difference--sequential vs simultaneous decentering--was identified. The multidimensional nature of role-taking tasks is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognition and perception in the object concept.

45 infants, divided into 3 matched groups, were measured on tests of object permanence, coordination of schemes, and "perceptual" permanence at 3 and 4 mo of age. Experimental groups were trained on 7 occasions between test dates. Group 1 was trained in the coordination of the schemes of vision and prehension; Group 2 was trained in the "perceptual" permanence behavior of visual tracking; Group 3 received no training but was also tested at 5 mo of age. No evidence was found of "perceptual" permanence by this age. The superior performance of Group 1 to other groups on object permanence tasks at 4 mo supported the Piagetian claim that the object concept develops from the coordination of schemes. (French abstract) (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The social and cognitive value of preschool toys and activities.

Observed 24 male and 18 female preschoolers (mean age 3.8 yrs) during free play to examine (a) the 10 most preferred free play activities in a preschool setting, (b) the social and cognitive values of the toys and activities, and (c) sex differences in the use of materials. Results show that (a) the most frequently occurring activities included cutting and pasting, painting and crayoning, sand and water, and books; (b) activities engaged in in a nonsocial functional fashion were less complex and mature than those used in a nonsocial constructive fashion; and (c) females engaged in more art work and less block and vehicle play than males, thus indicating a lack of change in toy preference across sexes over a period of more than 40 yrs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transfert d'une stratégie de mémorisation chez des enfants de 10 ans: étude des différences individuelles.

Studied spontaneous or induced use of an organization strategy on free recall tasks by children differing with regard to perceptual field dependence–field independence (i.e., global vs analytic perceptual style). Human Ss: 72 normal male and female school-age children (mean age 10 yrs). In a 2 by 2 by 2 experimental design, Ss were divided into 8 groups according to gender, perceptual style (global vs analytic), and treatment (control vs experimental). The groups received a brief illustration of a semantic organization strategy designed to promote memorization of verbal material. Ss performed 3 successive and identical recall tasks followed by 2 different tasks requiring either a transfer of maintenance or a transfer of generalization. Intergroup differences in memorization strategies and recall performances were analyzed. Tests used: The Group Embedded Figures Test. (English abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of day care on the development of cognitive abilities in 8-year-olds: A longitudinal study.

In G?teborg, Sweden, 146 children (72 girls) were enrolled in a longitudinal study when they averaged 16 mo of age. None of the children had experienced regular out-of-home care yet, but within 3 mo, 54 entered center care and 33 entered family day care. Quality of home and out-of-home care environments, child temperament, and the development of verbal abilities were assessed regularly during preschool years. When they were 8 yrs old (2nd grade), cognitive ability tests were administered to the 123 children (65 girls) still in the study. Tested ability was related to the number of months children had spent in center-based day care before 3.5 yrs of age. Child care quality predicted cognitive abilities among children who had spent at least 36 mo in out-of-home care during their preschool years. Both tested and rated cognitive abilities in 2nd grade were related to earlier measures of verbal ability and to paternal involvement during preschool years. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Neuropsychological performance and positive and negative symptoms in schizophrenia.

Examined cognitive functions in 11 positive-symptom (mean age 36 yrs), 10 negative-symptom (mean age 33.8 yrs), and 23 mixed-symptom (mean age 31.4 yrs) schizophrenics; 15 bipolar patients (mean age 34.7 yrs); and 12 normal controls (mean age 34.8 yrs) to explore the relation between symptoms and performance. Ss were administered a neuropsychological test battery including the Purdue Pegboard, the Revised Visual Retention Test, and the Block Design subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Revised (WAIS—R). Group comparisons revealed generalized deficits in schizophrenics. Positive-symptom schizophrenics scored below normal Ss and negative-symptom Ss on 2 measures tapping verbal memory. Multiple regression analyses revealed that negative symptom ratings were inversely associated with performance on visual-motor tasks, whereas positive symptoms were inversely associated with verbal memory performance. Findings are not consistent with the notion that cognitive deficits are uniquely associated with negative symptoms. Instead, results suggest that there may be specific cognitive correlates of both the positive and negative symptom dimensions. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cross-modal and intramodal transfer as predictors of mental development in full-term and preterm infants.

25 full-term (FT) and 33 preterm (PT) infants who had participated in studies of cross-modal (CM) and intramodal (IM) transfer at 12 mo of age were seen at older ages to assess the predictive validity of these early measures for later cognition. FT Ss were administered the Bayley Scales of Infant Development at 24 mo of age; PT Ss were administered these scales at 12 and 24 mo of age, the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (Form L-M) at 34 and 40 mo of age, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Revised and the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration at 6 yrs of age. For FT Ss, both 12-mo measures were significantly related to 24-mo Bayley Mental Development Index (MDI) scores; for PT Ss, both 12-mo measures were related not only to 24-mo Bayley MDI but to each subsequent measure of cognitive outcome through 6 yrs. 12-mo IM scores were highly correlated with the 6-yr assessment of visual–motor integration. A measure of object permanence obtained at 12 mo was also related to cognitive outcome, but not so consistently as were the other 2 12-mo measures. Although parental education was a significant predictor beginning at 24 mo, multiple regression analyses indicated that the CM and the IM measures substantially increased the percentage of variance in outcome that could be accounted for by parental education alone. (61 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical maturation rate and cognitive performance in early adolescence: A longitudinal examination.

A longitudinal experiment examined (1) the development of the relationship between physical maturation rate and cognitive performance as children reach adolescence and (2) the specific components of cognitive processing that are most closely linked to physical maturation rate. 78 3rd-grade girls and 67 5th-grade boys were examined prepubertally on a battery of cognitive ability and perceptual asymmetry measures (including the PPVT) and reexamined 2 yrs later when secondary sex characteristics could be evaluated as a measure of pubertal status. At that time, extreme groups of 10 early and 10 late maturers for each sex were selected for examination on a more detailed battery (including the WISC—R Coding and Block Design subtests and the Stroop Color-Word test) designed to assess specific components of cognitive processing. Although there were no maturation-related differences in performance on the cognitive-ability tasks, differences were detected on the cognitive-process tasks: Early and late maturers of both sexes exhibited differences in their use of visual information, phonemic perception, and presence of a recency effect in the serial-memory task. (53 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experience-dependent recovery of visuospatial functioning in older alcoholic persons.

Exposed 2 groups of alcoholic males to verbal and visuospatial paired-associate learning tasks known to be sensitive to alcohol dysfunction. Group 1, with 16 Ss (mean age 52.19 yrs), received 4 task administrations 3–4 days apart, beginning 4 days after drinking stopped. Group 2, with 14 Ss (mean age 49.79 yrs), received identical administration beginning 16 days after drinking stopped. An alternate form of the tasks was administered at the final session to assess transfer of training. Two matched nonalcoholic control groups of 12 Ss each (mean age 50.79 yrs) established normative performance on both forms of the tasks. Although the alcoholic Ss' verbal learning was unimpaired, visuospatial functioning was equally impaired initially in both alcoholic groups despite differing periods of abstinence, indicating the lack of time-dependent recovery. However, practice with the visuospatial task resulted in improved visuospatial performance and positive transfer of training not significantly different from normal Ss. It is suggested that since alcoholism treatment outcome is related to neuropsychological status, rehabilitation of cognitive functioning may improve treatment success. (41 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethical issues in sociometric testing: Impact of sociometric measures on interaction behavior.

Examined the immediate and long-term effects of sociometric testing on preschool children's peer interactions. Positive and negative nomination as well as rating-scale sociometric measures were administered individually to 27 children (aged 3 yrs 1 mo to 5 yrs) from 2 preschool classrooms. Behavioral observations of peer interaction were conducted in the weeks before and after sociometric testing as well as during the 10 min immediately following testing. Behavior was recorded in terms of the initiator and recipient of the interaction as well as the affective quality of the initiation and response. Results indicate that although Ss make more positive initiations and responses to most-preferred peers than to least-preferred peers, they did not differ in the frequency of negative initiations or responses made to most- vs least-preferred peers as a function of sociometric testing. Thus, sociometric testing did not appear to adversely influence Ss' peer interactions. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Symbolic play and its cognitive significance.

Explored the relationship between symbolic play training and conservation attainment. Ss were 30 middle-class nonconserving children, with a median age of 4.3 yrs. After extensive pretests on conservation of quantity, 15 nonconservers were assigned to the experimental condition, consisting of 3 sessions of symbolic play on consecutive days, and 15 Ss were assigned to the control condition, consisting of 3 daily play sessions with puzzles, mosaics, and drawing tasks. Subsequent to the play sessions, Ss were given conservation of quantity posttests. Results show that 13 of the experimental Ss manifested some change in solving conservation problems, with 4 Ss reaching the level of full conservation attainment. Only a single S from the control group showed a change toward conservation on the posttests. Data are interpreted as supporting a cognitive function of symbolic play. (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Early socioemotional predictors of cognitive competency at 4 years.

In a previous study (M. D. Lewis, 1993), infants' reunion distress at 3 mo predicted lower sensorimotor abilities at 4–5.5 mo. This follow-up study extended this prediction to overall cognitive competency at 4 yrs and examined its relation to early maternal predictors of competency. Controlling for early sensorimotor differences, 3-mo distress and anger predicted lower cognitive scores at 4 yrs, with most of the predicted variance in items tapping short-term memory. Controlling for early emotional and sensorimotor differences, 3–5 mo maternal responsiveness predicted higher competency at 4 yrs, with most of the predicted variance in items tapping perceptual performance. Infant joy did not predict later competency. Early negative emotion and maternal responsiveness were independent but equally strong predictors, suggesting different causal mechanisms or different developmental paths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A canonical correlation analysis of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Revised and the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability in a sample referred for suspected learning disabilities.

Examined the degree of overlap between the WISC—R and the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability (WJTCA) from the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery in 152 Ss (aged 7 yrs 4 mo to 12 yrs 10 mo) referred for evaluation because of suspected learning disabilities (LD). Analysis yielded 3 significant canonical correlations. The redundancy index showed that approximately 28.6% of the WJTCA subtest variance was predictable from the linear combination of the WISC—R subtests, and approximately 32.7% of the WISC—R subtest variance was predictable from the WJTCA subtests. Analysis of the structure correlations showed that the 1st canonical variates shared a general intelligence factor, the 2nd a perceptual speed factor, and the 3rd a numerical-memory factor. It is suggested that, if these findings are substantiated with a larger sample, the mean-score discrepancy previously found between the WJTCA and the WISC—R for children suspected of having LD is attributable to unique factor structures. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intermediate-size transposition and children's operational level.

Three experiments with a total of 170 children aged 4 yrs 8 mo–7 yrs 5 mo examined the relationship between intermediate-size transposition and operational level. In each experiment, concrete and preoperational Ss were identified by Piagetian tasks. In Exp I, half of the Ss received single-problem training and the other half multiple-problem training, followed by a far test of transposition. Exp II was similar to the multiple-training condition, but all Ss could verbalize and understand the concept "middle size." Exp III differed from Exp II in providing a test of near transposition after single-problem training. It was found that logical abilities as well as perceptual factors are involved in transposition performance. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Filial therapy with nonoffending parents of children who have been sexually abused.

Examined the effectiveness of a 10 wk filial therapy training model as a method of intervention for nonoffending parents (24–56 yrs old) and their children (4–10 yrs old) who have experienced sexual abuse. Ss were assigned to either an experimental or control group and were given pretraining sessions and assessments. The parents in the experimental group then conducted weekly 30 min special play sessions with their children, as recommended by Landreth (1991). One session was videotaped. The parents received constructive feedback and support from the facilitator and group members during meetings. A posttest battery of instruments was administered to parents and children following the training sessions. Analyses of covariance revealed that the nonoffending parents in the experimental group significantly increased their level of empathy in their interactions with their children, significantly increased their attitude of acceptance toward their children, and significantly reduced their level of stress. Measures of the children's behavior, anxiety, emotional adjustment, and self-concept indicated positive trends. The authors maintain that this study supports filial therapy as an effective intervention for nonoffending parents and their children who have experienced sexual abuse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Retarded object permanence development in methylmercury exposed Macaca fascicularis infants.

Mothers of 12 full-term, normal birth-weight Macaques (Macaca fascicularis) received methylmercury (MeHg) hydroxide orally in apple juice at 50 μg/kg/day for 4 mo to 2 yrs before conception and at individual doses during pregnancy. Mothers of 12 control infants received apple juice without MeHg. Infants were separated from their mothers on delivery and were laboratory reared. Beginning at 14 days of age, infants were tested for object permanence development using a plain reach task and hiding tasks. Results indicate that the performance of the MeHg-exposed infants on the full hiding task was significantly retarded compared with controls. On average, exposed infants required nearly twice as many sessions and were over 1 mo older than control infants when they would retrieve the fully hidden object. Although not all of the MeHg-exposed infants who exhibited retarded object permanence development showed signs of attentional problems, it is suggested that for some infants, these attentional problems may be an early precursor to later cognitive deficits. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Communication skills training for divorcees.

Examined the effects of a weekend training program in communication skills for divorced persons. 13 experimental Ss—5 males, 8 females 24–50 yrs old, separated for 1–24 mo—received 2 days of interpersonal skills training, while 14 control Ss—5 males, 9 females 25–50 yrs old, separated for 1–26 mo—received no training. After training, the experimentals increased their perceived level of social support and their self-disclosure and empathy skills significantly more than the controls. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Use it or lose it? Wii brain exercise practice and reading for domain knowledge.

We investigated the training effects and transfer effects associated with 2 approaches to cognitive activities (so-called brain training) that might mitigate age-related cognitive decline. A sample of 78 adults between the ages of 50 and 71 completed 20 one-hr training sessions with the Nintendo Wii Big Brain Academy software over the course of 1 month and, in a second month, completed 20 one-hr reading sessions with articles on 4 different current topics (order of assignment was counterbalanced for the participants). An extensive battery of cognitive and perceptual speed ability measures was administered before and after each month of cognitive training activities, along with a battery of domain-knowledge tests. Results indicated substantial improvements on the Wii tasks, somewhat less improvement on the domain knowledge tests, and practice-related improvements on 6 of the 10 ability tests. However, there was no significant transfer of training from either the Wii practice or the reading tasks to measures of cognitive and perceptual speed abilities. Implications for these findings are discussed in terms of adult intellectual development and maintenance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Convergent validation of perspective taking: A one-year follow-up.

Investigated how well 56 kindergarten through 3rd-grade children's performance on tasks requiring them to infer another person's perceptual, cognitive, and affective viewpoints predicted their ability to infer another person's cognitive viewpoint more than 1 yr later. Differential relationships between tasks from the 2 batteries were obtained, suggesting that perspective taking is a multidimensional social-cognitive skill. Several aspects of the obtained relationships are highlighted, and a suggestion is made for a multitrait-multimethod approach to the validation of the perspective-taking construct. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)