Representing spatial location and layout from sparse kinesthetic contacts

Participants' fingers were guided to 2 locations on a table for 3 s, then back to the start. They reported distances and angles between the locations by (a) replacing 1 or 2 fingers, (b) translating the contacted configuration, or (c) estimating distance or angle alone. Distance error increased across these conditions. Angular error increased when the angular reference axis was rotated before the response. Replacing 1 finger was impaired by a change in posture from exposure to test. The results suggest a kinesthetic representation is used to replace the fingers, but to estimate distance and angle at new locations, a configural representation is computed. This presentation is oriented within an extrinsic reference frame and maintains shape more accurately than scale.     

Neuropsychological screening for cognitive impairment using computer-assisted tasks

The aim of this study was to validate a computer-assisted screening battery for classifying patients into two groups, those with and without cognitive impairment. Participants were all patients referred to the neuropsychology clinics at four VA medical centers during a 1-year period. Patients meeting the study inclusionary criteria (N = 252) were administered the Neurobehavioral Evaluation System-3 (NES3) computer-assisted battery. A detailed neuropsychological examination was carried out by an experienced neuropsychologist, who diagnosed the patient as cognitively impaired or not impaired. The neuropsychologist's diagnosis was the gold standard. Recursive partitioning analyses yielded several classification procedures using the NES3 data to predict the gold standard These procedures produced a set of six NES3 tasks that provide good sensitivity and specificity in predicting di- agnosis. Sensitivity and specificity for the least random classification procedure were 0.87 and 0.67, respectively. The results suggest that computer-assisted screening methods are a promising means of triaging patients.     

Cognitive strategy and ability in endurance activities

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether elite athletes utilize associative strategies and, on the other hand, if nonelite athletes prefer to use dissociative strategies. 60 athletes were interviewed and the Schomer's 1986 method of measurement was used to measure association and dissociation. Analysis showed no significant differences in the total associative and dissociative scores among the three different abilities. However, a significant difference was found concerning the use of dissociative strategy between men and women.     

Relationships of coping styles with type of sport

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether the type of sport is associated with coping styles. 80 athletes (weightlifters, runners, swimmers, and triathletes) were administered the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations. Analysis showed weightlifters had a lower mean score on Avoidance coping than the other groups of athletes. Differences concerning sex and ability were found as well.     

Illusory hand ownership in a patient with personal neglect for the upper limb,but no somatoparaphenia

The symptoms of patients with left personal neglect are characterized by inattention towards contralesional (left) body parts while at the same time explicitly ascertaining ownership for the neglected hemibody. It is currently unknown if personal neglect is associated with more subtle or implicit disturbances of own body perception and body ownership as measured with the rubber hand illusion. In this study, we report data from a patient with a right hemispheric lesion and personal neglect, without associated somatosensory deficits. We administered to the patient (and to 12 age‐matched controls) the rubber hand illusion paradigm to the right and left hands, to elicit illusory ownership for a fake hand, before and after recovery from personal neglect for the left arm. In a first session, run when the patient showed personal neglect affecting the left arm, he experienced a significantly enhanced subjective illusion of embodiment for the left fake hand as compared to the right hand (as assessed through a standard questionnaire). After recovery from personal neglect for the left arm (second session), the results of the left and right rubber hand illusion experiments were comparable, with no modulation of hand ownership. We argue that personal neglect may consist not only in an inattentional disorder, but also in a deficit of multisensory body representation characterized by a high sensitivity to experimental manipulations of subjective aspects of body ownership.     

Considering Development in Developmental Disorders

Various theorists have argued for the importance of a developmental approach to studying typical development (Karmiloff-Smith, 1998; Lerner, 1996; Lerner & Hood, 1986; Masten & Cicchetti, 2010; Overton, 2014; Overton & Lerner, 2012, 2014), and there are reasons to believe that this issue is even more critical to the study of atypical development (Thomas, 2016; Thomas et al., 2009). In this article, we bring together perspectives from a variety of theorists to outline the importance of conceptualizing both typical and atypical development as a not-necessarily-linear, interconnected, and multifaceted set of individual trajectories embedded in real-world contexts (Karmiloff-Smith, 1998; Masten & Cicchetti, 2010; Overton & Lerner, 2012). Using examples from studies of atypical brain and behavior, we describe 6 lenses that can be applied to developmental research.     

Gender Differences in the Construction of Spirituality, Work, Learning, and Community by Baalei Teshuvah

This paper explores the question, “How do Jewish men and women who have become Orthodox (baalei teshuvah) compare in their constructions of spirituality, work, learning, religious practices, and community?” It is based on a qualitative research study that included interviews with 48 baalei teshuvah (24 men, 24 women), two focus groups, and ten key informant interviews. Participants were from the East Coast of the USA. We found the women more affirmative about their spirituality and feelings about community; men identified with these experiences but not the terminology. The men gave more attention to work and to their struggles integrating work and religion. The women expressed excitement about learning whereas the men conveyed self-consciousness over their language and learning deficiencies.     

Determinants of Parental Monitoring and Preadolescent Sexual Risk Situations Among African American Families Living in Urban Public Housing

We investigated determinants of parental monitoring and the association between parental monitoring and preadolescent sexual risk situations among low-income, African American families living in urban public housing. Preadolescents and their parents or caregivers who participated in a longitudinal study of familial and contextual influences on HIV/AIDS risk provided data on parental monitoring and preadolescent sexual risk situations. Data were also collected on parent risk factors (psychological distress, maternal age at first childbirth); preadolescent risk factors (responsiveness to parents, peer pressure) and contextual factors (parenting help, household type, friendship, partner presence, and perception of religious guidance) that were hypothesized to predict parental monitoring levels. Results showed that greater parental monitoring predicted less sexual risk situations. Further, instrumental and emotional supports were both significant predictors of parental monitoring, but parent and preadolescent risk factors were not strongly associated with parental monitoring. These results were similar for male and female preadolescent youth. Our findings suggest that preventive interventions to reduce sexual risk situations for urban, African American youth should consider parental monitoring. In addition, contextual factors such as strong parental friendship networks and instrumental help may enable parents to provide closer monitoring of youth.     

the global career development facilitator credential: an international perspective

The Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF) credential was established to provide professional training and standards for individuals working in the career field. GCDF programs are now available in the United States and 10 other countries. The authors highlight the first international GCDF program in New Zealand, new online GCDF training in Canada, and other other recent GCDF developments.     

Vocabulary learning in primary school children: Working memory and long-term memory components

The goal of this study was to investigate which working memory and long-term memory components predict vocabulary learning. We used a nonword learning paradigm in which 8- to 10-year-olds learned picture-nonword pairs. The nonwords varied in length (two vs. four syllables) and phonology (native sounding vs. including one Russian phoneme). Short, phonologically native nonwords were learned best, whereas learning long nonwords leveled off after a few presentation cycles. Linear structural equation analyses showed an influence of three constructs—phonological sensitivity, vocabulary knowledge, and central attentional resources (M capacity)—on nonword learning, but the extent of their contributions depended on specific characteristics of the nonwords to be learned. Phonological sensitivity predicted learning of all nonword types except short native nonwords, vocabulary predicted learning of only short native nonwords, and M capacity predicted learning of short nonwords but not long nonwords. The discussion considers three learning processes—effortful activation of phonological representations, lexical mediation, and passive associative learning—that use different cognitive resources and could be involved in learning different nonword types.