Short-term serial recall in ADDH,normal, and reading-disabled boys

Short-term retention of verbal items of span and subspan length was examined in hyperactive (ADDH), normal and non-ADDH reading-disabled boys. Performance of ADDH and normal boys did not differ on three measures of verbal serial recall. Thus, it appears that the cognitive deficits of ADDH children cannot be attributed to deficient retention of stimuli. In contrast, reading-disabled (RD) boys performed significantly more poorly than both normal and ADDH boys when required to recall verbal items following filled delay intervals in which the children were required to perform a competing verbal activity. The results suggest that verbal encoding of RD children is particularly vulnerable to interference from other verbal stimuli. ADDH and RD children may represent subsamples of children demonstrating academic difficulties, with each group showing a characteristic pattern of cognitive deficits.This article is based on a doctoral dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research of McGill University. Special thanks are due to Rhonda Amsel for her help and advice.     

Narrative Skills,Gender, Culture,and Children’s Long-Term Memory Accuracy of a Staged Event

This study examined the extent to which school-aged children’s general narrative skills provide cognitive benefits for accurate remembering or enable good storytelling that undermines memory accuracy. European American and Chinese American 6-year-old boys and girls (N = 114) experienced a staged event in the laboratory and were asked to tell a story from a picture book that accessed their narrative skill. Children were interviewed about the staged event 6 months later to assess memory accuracy. Greater narrative skill when storytelling was associated with decreased free recall and recognition memory accuracy for the staged event. In free recall responses, this effect was driven by an increase in the likelihood that inaccurate details would be included in responses from children with better general narrative skills. For girls only, narrative skill predicted poorer recognition accuracy. Girls were also more language-proficient and provided more correct details in free recall than did boys. Chinese American children were more accurate than European American children when responding to recall prompts due to less frequent provision of incorrect details, particularly in girls. Findings are discussed in light of the roles of socialization in memory-reporting accuracy.     

Production deficiencies in free recall: A comparison of hyperactive,learning-disabled,and normal children

Free recall of weakly categorizable words was compared in hyperactive (ADDH), reading-disabled, and normal boys. During a baseline trial, hyperactive boys recalled fewer words and showed less category organization than both reading-disabled and normal boys. Following a manipulation designed to encourage semantic encoding of words, hyperactive boys showed an immediate improvement in item recall and organization so that their free-recall performance was similar to that of reading-disabled and normal children. During later trials of a multiple-trial format, hyperactive boys recalled fewer words than did the reading-disabled and normal boys, despite maintaining equality in category organization. Rather than lacking the skill to use semantic organization as a strategy in free recall, hyperactive boys had difficulty in spontaneously generating the organizational strategy in response to instructions to remember and sustaining sufficient effort to task completion.     

The generalizability of story grammar training across setting and tasks

Reading achievement depends in part on children's ability to employ strategies to monitor their comprehension, that is on children's use of metacognitive skills. An experimental intervention program created to foster such skills was evaluated. The story grammar training was designed to increase both strategic reading behavior and explicit, observable comprehension monitoring. Fourth-grade (N = 20) and fifth-grade (N = 16) children were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Maintenance was examined using free and probed oral recall, notetaking, and summarization of brief narrative and expository texts. Generalization was assessed through free and probed written recall of a lengthy text, which required both strategic reading and summarization skills for adequate comprehension. Skill acquisition was clearly demonstrated; trained readers were able to recall and summarize passages better than untrained readers. The evidence for generalization was more equivocal: although trained readers' free recall was significantly better than that of untrained readers, their probed recall was not. Provision of metacognitive skills that promote active comprehension monitoring, then, appears to provide children with the tools needed for independent reading. Programs designed to provide such skills may aid efforts to prevent reading failure.     

Supraspan verbal memory in attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity normal and reading-disabled boys

To assess memory problems associated with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADDH) and reading disability (RD), nonverbal subspan, span, and supraspan measures was administered to 30 ADDH, 30 normal, and 24 RD boys, ages 7 to 12. Results from the supraspan verbal measures, which included word lists and related and unrelated paired associates, are reported. Across all verbal tasks, deficits became most apparent in ADDH boys on measures requiring organized, deliberate rehearsal strategies, sustained strategic effort, and careful consideration of response alternatives. This pattern suggests impaired self-regulatory or executive processes. RDs showed more generalized deficits across the verbal measures, suggesting problems with verbal processing. Recent studies supporting this interpretation are reviewed.This research was partially supported by Grant MA-6913 from the Medical Research Council of Canada. We are grateful for the help of Rhonda Amsel in the various stages of this project.     

Sex differences in the relationship of recall to subvocal speech in preschool children

Previous research findings indicating that preschool-age boys use verbal means to encode pictorial material whereas preschool-age girls do not were further investigated. Detailed examinations were made of the polygraph tracings and serial position curves of recall of younger (mean age = 50 months) and older (mean age = 66 months) boys and girls. The older boys were different than the other sex by age groups in that (1) their recall and subvocal speech scores were significantly correlated; (2) they engaged in greater amounts of raw EMG activity on both high-labial and low-labial trials; and (3) they recalled only a small per cent of the names of pictures they did not subvocalize. Analysis of the serial position curves of recall revealed a greater recency effect for older boys and a greater primary effect for older girls. These data strongly support the notion that girls as young as 5 and 6 years of age are using other than verbal means to encode information, whereas boys similar in age are highly reliant upon verbal encoding methods.     

Gender Influences on Preschool Children's Social Problem-Solving Strategies

The authors investigated gender influences on the nature and competency of preschool children's social problem-solving strategies. Preschool-age children (N = 179; 91 boys, 88 girls) responded to hypothetical social situations designed to assess their social problem-solving skills in the areas of provocation, peer group entry, and sharing or taking turns. Results indicated that, overall, girls' responses were more competent (i.e., reflective of successful functioning with peers) than those of boys, and girls' strategies were less likely to involve retaliation or verbal or physical aggression. The competency of the children's responses also varied with the gender of the target child. Findings are discussed in terms of the influence of gender-related social experiences on the types of strategies and behaviors that may be viewed as competent for boys and girls of preschool age.     

Girls who use "masculine" problem-solving strategies on a spatial task: proposed genetic and environmental factors.

This study investigated strategy and performance differences between right-handed boys and girls on a mental rotation task. Based on predictions from Casey and Brabeck's (1990) theory of sex differences, the study was also designed to identify a target group of right-handed girls with the optimal combination of genetic and environmental factors (high math/science achievers with nonright-handed immediate relatives). They were predicted to show strategies and performance more similar to those of the boys than to those of both the low math/science achieving girls and the high math/science girls with all right-handed immediate relatives (predicted to have the nonoptimal genotype). Strategy preference was measured using selective interference, whereby subjects solved mental rotation items concurrently with either verbal or visual-spatial interference tasks. Group comparisons were made on the amount of decrement in mental rotation performance as a result of the two types of interference tasks. This provided a basis for comparing the groups on the use of visual-spatial or verbal strategies on the mental rotation task. The boys: (1) did not show a significant advantage over the girls on the mental rotation items, but (2) did depend more on visual-spatial strategies than the girls, and (3) depended less on verbal strategies than the girls. The target girls: (1) outperformed the low math/science achieving girls on the mental rotation items and did not show a significant advantage over the other high math/science group, (2) depended more on visual-spatial strategies than both the other two groups of girls, and (3) depended less on verbal strategies than the low math/science girls, while showing no significant difference compared to the nonoptimal high math/science girls. Examining within-group differences, the boys preferred visual-spatial strategies, while the girls in both the nontarget groups preferred verbal ones. However, for the target girls, no within-subject strategy differences were found. The present findings support the theory that, like the boys, the target girls depend more on visual-spatial strategies than do other girls. It is possible that the target girls use a combination of visual-spatial and verbal strategies when solving mental rotation tasks.     

Spontaneous categorizers retain more than spontaneous alphabetizers

Immediate and delayed free recall of unstructured verbal materials were assessed for alphabetizers and categorizers after varying study times. Alphabetizers and categorizers did not differ in immediate recall, but retention following a 6-day interval was consistently higher for categorizers than for alphabetizers. Both immediate and delayed recall increased with study time, which did not interact with learning strategy. In the next experiment alphabetizers and categorizers learned two lists, the second of which was categorically structured or unstructured. No retroactive interference on first-list recall was produced by the learning of the structured list, but the learning of the unstructured list produced retroactive interference for the alphabetizers only. It was suggested that, although both alphabetizers and categorizers probably use their respective strategies for other verbal tasks, the categoric strategy should create less interference because specific 'categories are rarely encountered in successive tasks.     

Story Recall and Narrative Coherence of High-Functioning Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Previous research has found few quantitative differences between children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and well-matched controls in the length, complexity, and structure of their narratives. Researchers have noted, however, that narratives of children with ASDs have an unusual and idiosyncratic nature. This study provides an analysis of narratives in 17 children with high-functioning ASDs and 17 typically developing children matched on age, gender, language abilities, and cognitive abilities. We examined story recall and narrative coherence. The study revealed no group differences in story length or syntactic complexity. Children with ASDs also did not differ from controls in their use of the gist of a story to aid recall, or in their sensitivity to the importance of story events. Children with ASDs did, however, produce narratives that were significantly less coherent than the narratives of controls. Children with ASDs appeared less likely to use the gist of the story to organize their narratives coherently. These findings are discussed with regard to their relationship to other cognitive and linguistic difficulties of children with ASDs.     

Developmental changes in memory: The effects of processing time and rehearsal instructions

An overt rehearsal procedure was used to investigate the relationship between children's rehearsal strategies and free recall performance. Previous work has shown that developmental differences in rehearsal content, rather than rehearsal frequency, affect recall performance. This experiment investigated the effects of increased processing time and rehearsal training upon recall. Third-grade girls (age 8) were able to use additional processing time to increase the activity of their rehearsal, and they showed corresponding improvement in recall. In contrast, third-grade boys (age 8) and sixth-grade boys and girls (age 12) did not take advantage of a slower presentation rate to rehearse more actively, and their recall did not change. Further, even without additional processing time, both the third-grade boys and girls were able to use an instructed active rehearsal strategy to facilitate their recall. The direct manipulation of rehearsal activity and the resulting improvement in recall provide experimental support for the proposed relationship between rehearsal content and recall from long-term memory store.     

Listening comprehension and working memory are impaired in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder irrespective of language impairment

This study investigated listening comprehension and working memory abilities in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), presenting with and without language impairments (LI). A 4-group design classified a community sample (n = 77) of boys aged 9–12 into ADHD, ADHD + LI, LI, and Normal groups. Children completed tests of basic language and cognitive skills, verbal and spatial working memory, and passage-level listening comprehension. Multivariate analyses and post hoc comparisons indicated that ADHD children who did not have co-occurring LI comprehended factual information from spoken passages as well as normal children, but were poorer at comprehending inferences and monitoring comprehension of instructions. ADHD children did not differ from normal children in verbal span, but showed significantly poorer verbal working memory, spatial span, and spatial working memory. The ADHD + LI and LI groups were most impaired in listening comprehension and working memory performance, but did not differ from each other. Listening comprehension skills were significantly correlated with both verbal and spatial working memory, and parent–teacher ratings of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity. Findings that children with ADHD but no LI showed subtle higher-level listening comprehension deficits have implications for both current diagnostic practices and conceptualizations of ADHD.     

Automatic and effortful processing in Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Twenty-five boys with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and 23 age-matched controls were compared on verbal memory tasks differentiating automatic versus effortful information processing. Automatic processing tasks included the recognition of new or old words in a list and the recognition of frequency of occurrence of words in a list. Effortful tasks included free recall of lists of both related and unrelated words. Hyperactive boys did not differ from controls in automatic processing capabilities but demonstrated significantly poorer effortful processing. Intercorrelations of the variables revealed high correlations between scores on effortful measures and also raise questions about the purity of automaticity in some tasks employed. Stepwise discriminant analysis demonstrated that free recall of related words (an effortful task) best discriminated between groups. Effort-related processing in hyperactive and normal children is discussed in relation to variables of motivation, affect, arousal, and other higher-order cognitive processes.     

Categorical and schematic organization and the development of retrieval strategies

This study investigated the effects of schematic and categorical organization on young children's recall. Preschool and kindergarten children recalled either a taxonomic list or a story in one of two presentation conditions: an alternate condition, in which the material was presented, children recalled it and the procedure was repeated, or a successive condition in which the material was presented twice and children recalled it twice. Although preschool children's story recall was well organized, their list recall was poorly organized, and organization did not increase over recall trials in either presentation condition. In contrast, kindergarten children's recall of both the story and the list was well organized, and their recall was better organized on the second recall trial than on the first in both presentation conditions. These results are discussed in terms of the development of retrieval strategies during the preschool years/     

Problem solving in hyperactive,normal, and reading-disabled boys

Diagnostic problem solving was examined in groups of hyperactive, normal, and nonhyperactive reading disabled boys matched on age and verbal IQ. On the matrix solution task employed (a version of the game of 20 Questions) hyperactives used less efficient questions and strategies than the other two groups, in spite of the task being designed to maximize the performance of the hyperactives. Readingdisabled children were not significantly worse than normal children on the task. The results were interpreted as suggesting that the attentional difficulties of hyperactives retard the development of strategies for solving complex problems. Nonhyperactive reading disabled children may be less affected in this area because of the absence of significant attentional difficulties.This article is based on a doctoral dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research of McGill University by the first author. We are grateful to the students, teachers, and principals of the following schools in the Montreal area: Allancroft, Beacon Hill, Briarwood, Cedar Park, Greendale, Hillcrest, Lakeside Heights, Martinvale, Sunny Dale, Thomas H. Bowes, and Vivian Graham. Special thanks are due Rhonda Amsel, John MacNamara, and Chet Olsen for their help and advice.     

Initial dyadic peer interaction of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder and normal boys

The present study assessed the frequency and patterns of play duration and verbal behavior of medicated attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) boys in an initial social encounter with a normal, same-age peer. Eight pairs each of previously unacquainted ADHD/normal boys and normal/normal boys were videotaped as they interacted in a free-play setting (N=32). The ADHD/normal dyads engaged in more solitary play and less associative play than the normal/normal dyads. Sequential analyses of the ADHD/normal dyads' play patterns revealed that they had problems in their progression along the play hierarchy, in sustaining associative play, and in avoiding withdrawal after rough and tumble play. In comparison to the normal/normal dyads, the ADHD/normal dyads also differed in the quality of verbal interaction as seen in their lower levels of verbal reciprocity and affective expression. Process explanations for the problems ADHD boys display in an initial social encounter and the implications of these difficulties for diminished socialization opportunities were discussed.This research was supported by a University of Richmond undergraduate research grant to the first author. The authors want to express their appreciation to Meena Hazra, M.D., for her cooperation in the execution of this study. The diligence of Ann Burton, Caroline Farmer, Donna Fugett, Cindy Huffard, Kat Kasen, Linnea Petty, and Mica Post is also gratefully acknowledged.     

Narrative organisation at encoding facilitated children's long-term episodic memory

This study examined the effect of narrative organisation at encoding on long-term episodic memory in a sample of five- to seven-year-old children (N = 113). At an initial interview, children were asked to narrate a story from a picture book. Six months later, they were interviewed again and asked to recall the story and answer a series of direct questions about the story. Children who initially encoded more information in narrative and produced more complete, complex, cohesive and coherent narratives remembered the story in greater detail and accuracy following the six-month interval, independent of age and verbal skills. The relation between narrative organisation and memory was consistent across culture and gender. These findings provide new insight into the critical role of narrative in episodic memory.     

Age-related changes in verbal and nonverbal memory during early childhood

In the present experiment, age-related changes in verbal and nonverbal memory performance by 2- to 4-year-old children were assessed. All children participated in the same unique event, and their memory of that event was assessed after a 24-hr delay. Overall, children's performance on each memory measure increased as a function of age. Furthermore, children's performance on both the verbal and nonverbal memory tests was related to their language ability; children with more advanced language skills reported more during the verbal interview and exhibited superior nonverbal memory relative to children with less advanced language skills. Finally, children's verbal recall of the event lagged behind both their nonverbal recall and their general verbal skill. It is hypothesized that despite large strides in language acquisition. preschool-age children continue to rely primarily on nonverbal representations of past events. The findings have important implications for the phenomenon of childhood amnesia.     

Memory for Movement Sequences in Gymnastics: Effects of Age and Skill Level

The authors studied the performances of 8- to 13-year-old skilled (n = 30) and less skilled (n = 30) gymnasts on a gymnastics routine recall task by examining the role of memorization strategies and imagery ability. Subjects had to reproduce 3 movement sequences presented on videotape. The number of trials needed to achieve correct recall, the strategies employed, and the subjects' imagery ability were analyzed. Recall performance improved with age and skill level. Movement labeling was the most prevalent strategy used; its frequency increased with age, although it did not lead to better recall performance. Performance was higher, however, among subjects with better imagery skills. The role of strategy development in the age-related improvement in memory performance was not clearly demonstrated. The effect of skill level is interpreted in terms of knowledge bases and kinesthetic movement encoding.