Dyslexia and dyscalculia: Two learning disorders with different cognitive profiles

This study tests the hypothesis that dyslexia and dyscalculia are associated with two largely independent cognitive deficits, namely a phonological deficit in the case of dyslexia and a deficit in the number module in the case of dyscalculia. In four groups of 8- to 10-year-olds (42 control, 21 dyslexic, 20 dyscalculic, and 26 dyslexic/dyscalculic), phonological awareness, phonological and visual-spatial short-term and working memory, naming speed, and basic number processing skills were assessed. A phonological deficit was found for both dyslexic groups, irrespective of additional arithmetic deficits, but not for the dyscalculia-only group. In contrast, deficits in processing of symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitudes were observed in both groups of dyscalculic children, irrespective of additional reading difficulties, but not in the dyslexia-only group. Cognitive deficits in the comorbid dyslexia/dyscalculia group were additive; that is, they resulted from the combination of two learning disorders. These findings suggest that dyslexia and dyscalculia have separable cognitive profiles, namely a phonological deficit in the case of dyslexia and a deficient number module in the case of dyscalculia.     

Episodic memory development: theory of mind is part of re‐experiencing experienced events

Two experiments with 3½‐ to 6½‐year‐old children showed that theory‐of‐mind development is associated with the growth of episodic memory. Episodic memory was assessed by manipulating informational conditions such that they permit or prevent the formation of episodic memories in terms of re‐experiencing the recalled event. Only experienced events, e.g. seeing how one puts a picture of a frog into a box, can be remembered by re‐experience. Events known through indirect information cannot be re‐experienced, e.g. putting pictures into the box when blindfolded and being later shown on video what was on these cards. Children were also tested on a battery of theory‐of‐mind tasks assessing their understanding of the origins of knowledge. There was a significant interaction in both experiments showing that recall of directly experienced items improved in relation to indirectly presented items the higher children's theory‐of‐mind scores. The discussion suggests that episodic memory development is specifically linked to the growing ability to introspect an ongoing experience and interpret it as representing an actual past event. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of matches and mismatches in agoraphobic and neutral situations

An experiment was conducted to investigate the generalizability of Rachman's match/mismatch model and to explore if environmental conditions affect the consequences of an underprediction. Twenty subjects walked around in agoraphobic, and 15 did so in neutral, situations. Both groups carried a walkman and 7 aversive human screams were administered to them at random times. The results gave strong support to previous investigations on matches and mismatches, but no differences were shown between agoraphobic and neutral situations. Possible explanations are discussed.     

Solving the eyewitness problem

Faulty eyewitness testimony is a major source of wrongful convictions. Four solutions are examined to safeguard against mistaken testimony having undue impact: (1) to overturn any conviction based solely on the uncorroborated testimony of a single eyewitness, (2) to require that an attorney be present at any pretrial identification procedure, (3) to allow an expert to testify during the trial about factors of perception and memory that could affect a witness's accuracy, and (4) to have the judge deliver a cautionary instruction to the jury, admonishing them to carefully scrutinize eyewitness testimony, or to educate them about such testimony. Each alternative is discussed within the context of psychological research and legal cases.     

Automaticity and interference in bilinguals

Summary In an experimental study with 40 English-German and 40 German-Swedish bilingual high school students, automaticity and interference were analyzed on the basis of Shiffrin and Schneider's theory of controlled and automatic processing. Confirming the assumptions inferred from the theory, dominant bilinguals reacted significantly faster to pictured objects in their dominant language than did balanced bilinguals in either of their two languages. Interaction effects with frequency indicated less experience with rare words in the balanced groups. Matched on the basis of reaction time scores, the balanced groups continued to show a higher error rate in recall, but not in recognition when compared with the dominant groups. It was concluded that training alone could not account for the differences in recall. A congenitally determined mental speed factor was suggested for which the theory makes no direct commitment. The strong interrelation between automaticity and interference was shown; their significance for bilinguals in highly speeded and unstructured tasks was also shown. The results reveal high cross-cultural consistency.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 3rd Nordic Symposium on Bilingualism, held in Umea, Sweden, June 4 to 5, 1980     

Arithmetical calculations in monolinguals and bilinguals

Summary A series of 240 arithmetical problems requiring one, two, or three operations of the same kind were presented to 32 German-Swedish bilingual and 14 German dominant subjects in the age range 14–19 years. The results provide evidence that language has an important effect on arithmetical performance, affecting latencies and error rates. Generally the bilingual subjects needed more time to perform the tasks and made more errors than the monolingual subjects. The results are tentatively explained by retrieval interference and decay of memory trace and support an interdependence hypothesis of bilingual organization in memory.This research was supported by a grant from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences     

Development of intra- and interlingual interference in bilinguals

Developmental changes in intra- and interlingual interference were followed in 74 German-Swedish bilingual and 15 trilingual subjects using Stroop tasks for vision. The results provide evidence that the differential pattern of interference is mainly determined by language usage. Intra- and interlingual interference follow language dominance patterns in an everchanging process; hence, it is the point of measurement that determines whether equivalent or different amounts of interference are obtained. Stimuli characteristics determine points of language balance but are—like cognitive capabilities—of minor importance for the differential pattern of interference. Stroop task performance cannot be taken as evidence for or against the interdependence hypothesis of bilingual storage, since the Stroop situation does not permit one language to be turned off. Prolonged response times in multilinguals, found in this study, are more congruent with the interdependence hypothesis. By providing this developmental perspective, the current findings can explain previous contradictory results.This research was supported by the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation. It was reported in a paper presented at the 3rd International Conference on Psycholinguistics and Foreign Language Learning, Åbo, Finland, October 25–6, 1982.     

Tortured families: a Coordinated Management of Meaning analysis

Torture is known to affect both the individual and the family. The aim of the present study was to reach a better understanding of the significance of communication and information about parental exposure to violence in torture-surviving families. The theoretical background is Social Constructionism and Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM). In-depth interviews were carried out with 14 members of 3 Middle Eastern refugee families living in Denmark in which the father had been exposed to torture. The 3 families experienced their life stories and situations as refugees in very different ways, ranging from meaninglessness, discontinuance, and alienation to a sense of community, solidarity, and openness. Communications about past events were related to such meaning-providing contexts. The way in which parents talk with their children about torture and organized violence can be understood in terms of "stories told" and "stories lived." When stories told (e.g., the experience of torture and organized violence) are in contradiction to stories lived, a situation of ambiguity and uncertainty is created. The meaning-providing contexts for making sense of the family history of violence and exile can be more or less coherent or contradictory, and might result in a strengthened relationship or confusion, powerlessness, and action paralysis. Clinicians can help traumatized families deal with their past histories of violence by paying attention to such ambiguities and contradictions.