Counsellors' perspectives on the use of the Schedule for the Evaluation of Individual Quality of Life (SEIQoL) in an alcohol counselling setting

As part of a randomised controlled trial to investigate the feasibility of using the Schedule for the Evaluation of Individual Quality of Life (SEIQoL) within an alcohol counselling setting, counsellors' views of using the tool were sought. Data about the service users' use of SEIQoL were collected during the counselling session, and focus groups and questionnaires were used to collect data on counsellor perceptions and experiences of using the tool. SEIQoL was easy and quick to use and provided users with a graphic, visual and dynamic means to identify important areas that contributed to their quality of life; it appeared to enhance the reflective process early on in counselling. Counsellors reported that service users requested the tool be used more frequently during the counselling process and they felt it could be a useful review tool.     

AN EVALUATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RECEPTIVE SPEECH SKILLS AND EXPRESSIVE SIGNING

We examined the effects of receptive speech on the acquisition of manual signing among three mentally retarded children. In an alternating treatments design, we compared the acquisition of expressive signs that were, versus were not, in a child's receptive vocabulary. The children were trained via total communication in which pictorial referents were named during sign training. Signs corresponding to known words were generally acquired faster and retained better than signs corresponding to unknown words. We conducted posttests to assess the stimulus control of signing and any changes in expressive and receptive signing and speech. Observed changes in performance could be accounted for by attention to aspects of the stimulus complex during training and functional equivalence of stimuli established by training.     

GROUP TRAINING OF CONSERVATION SKILLS WITH CHILDREN FROM A NON-TECHNOLOGICAL CULTURE*

Group training of conservation of length was undertaken with primary school children in Botswana. Each group contained 10 subjects of mixed academic ability. Three methods of training were used: (1) teacher demonstration accompanied by responsive group recitation, (2) limited manipulation of training materials by students, (3) full manipulation of training materials by students. The three training methods were effective in producing learning, retention, and generalization of conservation. The results are discussed in terms of Piaget's views on the role of environmental influences and the function of action in the development of cognitive structures. The value of Piagetian concepts for non-technological societies also is discussed.     

Lana Chimpanzee Learns to Count by “Numath”: A Summary of a Videotaped Experimental Report

This paper summarizes a videotaped presentation (Rumbaugh, Savage-Rumbaugh, Hopkins, Washburn, & Runfeldt, 1987) of computerized training programs whereby an adult female chimpanzee, Lana (Pan troglodytes), learned to use a joystick to remove from a screen the number of boxes appropriate to the value of a randomly selected Arabic numeral 1, 2, or 3. Initial training provided a variety of cues, both numeric and otherwise, to support correct performance. Across software programs, all cues other than numeric ones were deleted. In the final test, Lana was correct on over 80% of trials in which there was no residual feedback of intratrial events and where only her memory of those events could provide the cue to indicate that she had removed boxes in accordance with the value of the target numbers and should terminate the trial. The tape is narrated and consists of video recordings of Lana's performance on each software program.