Verbal rehearsal and selective attention in children with learning disabilities: A developmental lag

To investigate the development of verbal rehearsal strategies and selective attention in learning disabled children, Hagen's Central-Incidental task was administered to younger learning disabled (M CA = 8.68 years) and normal (M CA = 8.62 years) boys in Experiment 1 and to intermediate (M CA = 10.18 years) and older (M CA = 13.48 years) learning disabled boys in Experiment 2. Also, in Experiment 2, an experimentally induced verbal rehearsal condition was included to determine its effects on serial recall and selective attention performance. In Experiment 1, the serial postion curve of the normals revealed both a primacy and a recency effect, whereas that of the learning disabled revealed a recency effect only. In Experiment 2, both the intermediate and the older learning disabled exhibited both primacy and recency effects under both standard and rehearsal conditions. A developmental analysis of central recall for the three learning disabled groups revealed constant age-related increases in overall central recall and in primacy recall. That the normals recalled more central, but not more incidental, information than the learning disabled in Experiment 1 suggests that the learning disabled are deficient in selective attention. Correlational findings suggest that the selective attention of the learning disabled improves with age. The results were interpreted as support for the hypothesis of a developmental lag in the learning disabled population.     

Comparison of the methods of limits and electrodermal response for determination of lingual vibrotactile thresholds.

Lingual vibrotactile thresholds were obtained from 30 adult Ss by the method of limits and operant conditioning of the electrodermal response. Sensitivity of the tongue was measured at 250 Hz. Comparisons of lingual threshold data showed that thresholds obtained by the method of limits were significantly lower than those obtained by the electrodermal response technique. There was a moderate positive correlation between methods however, indicating a substantial relationship. It was concluded that consistent lingual vibrotactile indexes of sensitivity can be obtained using an electrodermal response approach.     

The unimportance of experimenter-bias in sensory deprivation research.

3 graduate student experimenters' expectations about the stress reaction of 24 subjects to sensory deprivation or to an ambulatory control condition were factorially manipulated. No significant differences were found for experimenters' expectation, directly or through interaction. Results were interpreted as a refutation ofthe assumed pervasiveness of experimenter-bias effects.     

The role of anionic, imidic and amidic forms in structure-activity relationships. Conjugation and bacteriostatic activity in sulphonamides.

The electronic structures of anionic, imidic and amidic forms of sulphonamides were investigated and compared by means of I.R., Raman and U.V. spectroscopy. Indices reflecting the electronic situation of the common moiety p-H2N-C6H4-SO2 was a whole, although not necessarily related, physically, to any event taking place in the biological processes, were found to correlate with the in vitro bacteriostatic activity of the specific individual forms. The influence of N1-substituents both on the SO2 electronic features and on the coupling between the para amino group and the phenyl ring was discussed. It resulted that the most active chemical species, in this class of compounds, are characterized, electronically, by the most electron-rich common moiety and, in particular, by the most negative oxygens in the SO2 group and the most available (less engaged) lone-pair in the rho-amino group. These conclusions give a new settlement both to the problem of resonance and to the relation between resonance effects and bacteriostatic activity in this class of compounds.     

Pastoral psychotherapy and the symbolic

The author points out and illustrates the interrelatedness of the capacity to think symbolically and a sense of self. Through a case study he describes the disclosure of hidden and unresolved personal concerns by symbolic references and the correspondence between personal myth and emotional concerns. A perspective of therapy is suggested—that it is a process of clarifying and demythologizing self-perceptions, conscious and unconscious, so that a person can move on to other representations of self and be liberated from restrictions imposed by undisclosed myths. Finally, the author examines what is pastoral or religious about a psychotherapeutic process and offers questions for further study.