Deregulated semantic cognition contributes to object‐use deficits in Alzheimer's disease: A comparison with semantic aphasia and semantic dementia

Executive control is impaired from the early stages of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and this produces deregulated semantic cognition (Corbett, Jefferies, Burns, & Lambon Ralph, 2012 ; Perry, Watson, & Hodges, 2000 ). While control deficits should affect semantic retrieval across all modalities, previous studies have typically focused on verbal semantic tasks. Even when non‐verbal semantic tasks have been used, these have typically employed simple picture‐matching tasks, which may be influenced by abnormalities in covert naming. Therefore, in the present study, we examined 10 patients with AD on a battery of object‐use tasks, in order to advance our understanding of the origins of non‐verbal semantic deficits in this population. The AD patients’ deficits were contrasted with previously published performance on the same tasks within two additional groups of patients, displaying either semantic degradation (semantic dementia) or deregulation of semantic retrieval (semantic aphasia; Corbett, Jefferies, Ehsan, & Lambon Ralph, 2009 ). While overall accuracy was comparable to the scores in both other groups, the AD patients’ object‐use impairment most closely resembled that observed in SA; they exhibited poorer performance on comprehension tasks that placed strong demands on executive control. A similar pattern was observed in the expressive domain: the AD and SA groups were relatively good at straightforward object use compared to executively demanding, mechanical puzzles. Error types also differed: while all patients omitted essential actions, the SA and AD groups’ demonstrations also featured unrelated intrusions. An association between AD patients’ object use and their scores on standard executive measures suggested that control deficits contributed to their non‐verbal semantic deficits. Moreover, in a task specifically designed to manipulate executive demand, patients with AD (and SA) exhibited difficulty in thinking flexibly about the non‐canonical uses of everyday objects, especially when distracted by semantically related objects. This study provides converging evidence for the notion that a failure of regulatory control contributes to multimodal semantic impairment in AD and uniquely demonstrates this pattern for the highly non‐verbal domain of object use.     

Garner interference is not solely driven by stimulus uncertainty

The speeded classification tasks popularized by Garner (1974), with their accompanying labels of separable and integral dimensions, have become the dominant paradigm for characterizing perceptual interactions between stimulus dimensions. Separable dimensions like color and shape can be selectively attended to at will, but integral dimensions like hue and brightness cannot. When classifying stimuli with respect to a single dimension, integral stimuli lead to faster performance in the baseline block, where only that single dimension varies, than in the filtering block, in which a second dimension is allowed to vary irrelevantly. No such difference is predicted for separable dimensions lead to no difference. The comparison between baseline and filtering confounds a change in the number of stimuli with a change in the number of variant dimensions. A new experimental condition is proposed utilizing three stimulus dimensions to hold the number of stimuli constant while introducing variance along a second irrelevant dimension. Data indicate that interference increases, suggesting that changes in the number of potential stimuli within a block are not necessary for Garner interference, in contrast to the accounts provided by extant quantitative models.     

Children’s Binding of What-Where-When-Who in Episodic Memory: Identifying Oneself in the Past

It is usually accepted that the binding of what, where, and when is a central component of young children’s and animals’ nonconceptual episodic abilities. We argue that additionally binding self-in-past (what-where-when-who) adds a crucial conceptual requirement, and we ask when it becomes possible and what its cognitive correlates are. In the central task, children aged 3.5 years to 6.5 years watched a light display on Day 1, with 2 lights coming on simultaneously or in 1 of 2 orders. This light display was filmed from 1 of 3 positions: with the camera behind the child, above the child, or facing the child. On Day 2, children watched 3 videos from the original angle, and each represented 1 of the 3 light configurations, with the child in the video occluded. Participants had to decide which occluded child they were and justify their choice by reference to the lights. Above-chance performance was evident after 4.5 years of age. In addition, all children received the following tasks: spatial perspective taking, seeing leads to knowing, modus tollens reasoning, and second-order theory of mind. With age and verbal ability partialed out, only second-order theory of mind correlated significantly with performance on the central task.     

Structure and Validity of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo Using an Expanded Item Pool in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

We evaluated the latent structure and validity of an expanded pool of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) items. An experimental rating scale with 44 candidate SCT items was administered to parents and teachers of 165 children in grades 2–5 (ages 7–11) recruited for a randomized clinical trial of a psychosocial intervention for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Predominantly Inattentive Type. Exploratory factor analyses (EFA) were used to extract items with high loadings (>0.59) on primary factors of SCT and low cross-loadings (0.30 or lower) on other SCT factors and on the Inattention factor of ADHD. Items were required to meet these criteria for both informants. This procedure reduced the pool to 15 items. Generally, items representing slowness and low initiative failed these criteria. SCT factors (termed Daydreaming, Working Memory Problems, and Sleepy/Tired) showed good convergent and discriminant validity in EFA and in a confirmatory model with ADHD factors. Simultaneous regressions of impairment and comorbidity on SCT and ADHD factors found that Daydreams was associated with global impairment, and Sleepy/Tired was associated with organizational problems and depression ratings, across both informants. For teachers, Daydreams also predicted ODD (inversely); Sleepy/Tired also predicted poor academic behavior, low social skills, and problem social behavior; and Working Memory Problems predicted organizational problems and anxiety. When depression, rather than ADHD, was included among the predictors, the only SCT-related associations rendered insignificant were the teacher-reported associations of Daydreams with ODD; Working Memory Problems with anxiety, and Sleepy/Tired with poor social skills. SCT appears to be meaningfully associated with impairment, even when controlling for depression. Common behaviors resembling Working Memory problems may represent a previously undescribed factor of SCT.     

Validity of the Sluggish Cognitive Tempo Symptom Dimension in Children: Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and ADHD-Inattention as Distinct Symptom Dimensions

This study examined the validity of the sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) symptom dimension in children. Ten symptom domains were used to define SCT (i.e., (1) daydreams; (2) attention fluctuates; (3) absent-minded; (4) loses train of thought; (5) easily confused; (6) seems drowsy; (7) thinking is slow; (8) slow-moving; (9) low initiative; and (10) easily bored, needs stimulation). Teacher ratings of 366 children (ages 5 to 13 with 56 % girls) along with parent ratings of 703 children (ages 5 to 13 with 55 % girls) indicated that SCT symptom domains one to eight showed convergent validity (i.e., substantial loadings on the SCT factor) and discriminant validity with the ADHD-IN dimension (i.e., higher loadings on the SCT factor than the ADHD-IN factor). Higher scores on this eight-symptom measure of SCT predicted lower levels of academic and social competence even after controlling for ADHD-IN and ADHD-HI. In addition, higher SCT scores still predicted higher anxiety/depression scores after controlling for ADHD-IN and ADHD-HI. Higher SCT scores also predicted lower ADHD-HI scores after controlling for ADHD-IN and anxiety/depression while higher ADHD-IN and anxiety/depression scores predicted higher ADHD-HI scores after controlling for SCT and anxiety/depression or ADHD-IN. SCT also showed a unique negative relationship with ODD while ADHD-IN and anxiety/depression showed unique positive relationships with ODD. This new measure of the SCT dimension was meaningfully independent from the ADHD-IN and anxiety/depression dimensions and suggests that such an SCT dimension may signify a distinct presentation of ADHD or a different (if highly comorbid) disorder altogether.     

Conceptual and Statistical Interactions: An Illustration with the AB5C and CWBs

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to compare the criterion validity of conceptual interactions between the Big Five traits of agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability to the statistical interactions between these traits. For illustration purposes we focus on linking these interactions to counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs).

Design/Methodology/Approach

Data for Study 1 was obtained from 196 employed students and focuses on the interaction between agreeableness and conscientiousness. Data for Study 2 was obtained from 220 employees and expanded the interaction space examined to include emotional stability.

Findings

All of the circumplex traits representing conceptual interactions were related to CWBs but only the traits most closely associated with conscientiousness showed incremental validity beyond their associated Big Five traits. Dominance analysis highlights increased concurrent validity of the circumplex traits compared to the Big Five statistical interactions in relation to CWBs.

Implications

Understanding the unique circumplex blends of the Big Five traits offers opportunities to enhance the criterion validity of Big Five measures. Results question the similarity between the AB5C circumplex traits and Big Five interactions, with their contributions appearing to be unique but their justification drastically different.

Originality/Value

The validity of the AB5C circumplex traits are relatively unknown. The current results expand this knowledge and directly compare the circumplex traits to interaction terms between agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability.     

Understanding Adult Participant and Parent Empowerment Prior to Evaluation in the Undiagnosed Diseases Network

The burden of living with an undiagnosed condition is high and includes physical and emotional suffering, frustrations, and uncertainty. For patients and families experiencing these stressors, higher levels of empowerment may be associated with better outcomes. Thus, it is important to understand the experiences of patients with undiagnosed conditions and their families affected by undiagnosed conditions in order to identify strategies for fostering empowerment. In this study, we used the Genetic Counseling Outcome Scale (GCOS-24) to assess levels of empowerment and support group participation in 35 adult participants and 67 parents of child participants in the Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) prior to their UDN in-person evaluation. Our results revealed significantly lower empowerment scores on the GCOS-24 in adult participants compared to parents of child participants [t(100)?=???3.01, p?=?0.003, average difference?=???11.12, 95% CI (??3.78, ??18.46)] and no significant association between support group participation and empowerment scores. The majority of participants (84.3%, 86/102) are not currently participating in any support groups, and participation rates were not significantly different for adult participants and parents of child participants (11.4 vs. 19.7%, respectively, FE p?=?0.40). Open-ended responses provided additional insight into support group participation, the challenges of living with undiagnosed conditions, and positive coping strategies. Future research will evaluate the extent to which empowerment scores change as participation in the UDN unfolds.     

Multisource Network and Latent Variable Models of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo,ADHD-Inattentive,and Depressive Symptoms with Spanish Children: Equivalent Findings and Recommendations

Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology - Multisource network and latent variable models were used to examine the construct validity of sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) symptoms relative to...     

Teaching and Self‐Formation: Why the Ignoble “Intro to World Religions” Really Matters

This paper explores the idea that the educational process plays a vital role in the formation and transformation of selves. Peter Hodgson's theological interpretation of education as paideia and Lucinda Huffaker's work on the achievement of “clarity of self” are brought together to demonstrate that empathy is central not only to evolution of self, but the educational process as well. The argument insists that introductory courses are places of immense potential for helping students in the lifelong task of achieving self‐clarity. The “Introduction to World Religions“ course is used as a practical illustration of the thesis.