Executive and attentional contributions to Theory of Mind deficit in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children has been associated with attentional and executive problems, but also with socioemotional difficulties possibly associated with deficits in Theory of Mind (ToM). Socioemotional problems in ADHD are associated with more negative prognoses, notably interpersonal, educational problems, and an increased risk of developing other psychiatric disorders that emphasize the need to clarify the nature of their ToM deficits. In this study, we hypothesized that ToM dysfunction in children with ADHD is largely attributable to their attentional and/or executive deficits. Thirty-one children with ADHD (8–12 years, IQ > 85) and 31 typically developing (TD) children were assessed using executive functions (inhibition, planning, and flexibility) and attentional tasks, as well as two advanced ToM tasks (Reading the Mind in the Eyes and Faux Pas) involving different levels of executive control. Children with ADHD performed more poorly than TD children in attentional, executive function, and ToM tasks. Linear regression analyses conducted in the ADHD group indicated that inhibition scores predicted performance on the “Faux Pas” task the best, while attention scores were the best for predicting performance on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes task. When controlled for inhibition and attentional variables, ToM performance in children with ADHD was actually similar to TD children. Contrarily, controlling for ToM scores did not normalize performance for inhibition and attentional tasks in children with ADHD. This unidirectional relationship suggests that deficits in the EF and attentional domains are responsible for ToM deficits in ADHD, which therefore may contribute to their socioemotional difficulties.     

The Behavioral Dyscontrol Scale and Functional Status Among Elderly Medical and Surgical Rehabilitation Patients

This research was conducted in a sample of 150 older adults (mean age = 78.0) who were inpatients receiving rehabilitation services for a variety of medical and postsurgical conditions. The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that the Behavioral Dyscontrol Scale (BDS), a measure of the ability to use intentions to guide purposeful activity, would be strongly associated with concurrent functional status after controlling for age, sex, education, severity of pain, medical comorbidity, depression (Geriatric Depression Scale), and general mental status (Mini Mental State Exam [MMSE]). Functional status was assessed by rehabilitaion nurses' ratings of patients on 11 individual Activities of Daily Living (ADL) items and the Barthel Index. The hypothesis, tested by means of multiple regression analysis, was supported by the results. The BDS was the independent variable most strongly associated with all 11 ADL items and the Barthel Index. The MMSE contributed significantly to none of the models. Other covariates made minimal contributions to the variance shared with functional ability. Consistent with prior results in other samples, the ability to use intentions to guide purposeful behavior appears to be an important contributor to everyday functioning among older adults.     

Integrated Support from Problem Structuring through to Alternative Evaluation Using COPE and V·I·S·A

Work in the field of multiple criteria analysis has generally focused on evaluation procedures, taking as its starting point a well-defined problem with specified alternatives and criteria. However, in reality, problems are rarely so well-structured; hence, in order to usefully support decision making in practice, multiple criteria analysts need to address the issue of problem structuring. In this respect, much can be learned from the body of work stemming from operational research and systems in the U.K., known collectively as problem-structuring methods. In this paper we describe a study which sought to integrate one of these approaches, SODA (strategic options development and analysis), using the COPE software for cognitive mapping, with multiple criteria evaluation based on a multi-attribute value function using V·I·S·A. The study took the form of a 2 day action research workshop to explore the strategic direction of the Supplies and Commercial Services Department of a large U.K. NHS Hospital Trust and to develop an action plan consistent with the agreed direction. Even though the workshop was intended to be exploratory, from the point of view of both the facilitators and the participants, it enabled the group to make progress towards the definition of a strategic direction and led to an increased understanding and awareness of the issues. Drawing on this experience, we comment in general on the potential benefits arising from the integration of these two approaches and suggest fruitful areas for future research and development of the software tools and associated methodologies. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J. Multi-Crit. Decis. Anal. 6 : 115–130 (1997) No. of Figures: 9. No. of Tables: 0. No. of References: 37.     

Approximation of Value Efficient Solutions

We introduce an approximation set to the value efficient set in multiobjective problems under partial information on the decision maker's preferences modelled by a vector value function. We show monotonicity and convergence properties based on increasingly precise vector value functions with two components, which improve the approximation and might be a support to possible solution methods. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

客体的视觉工作记忆研究进展

近年来,客体信息的视觉工作记忆问题引发了大量研究,并获得不少成果。本文对视觉工作记忆的研究范式,客体在视觉工作记忆中的存储方式、容量及保持时间等相关研究进行了概述,重点介绍关于视觉工作记忆存储单元和容量问题的"强客体"假设、"弱客体"假设和双重存储机制假设,并提出进一步的研究思路。     

Executive functions in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Executive dysfunction is a characteristic impairment of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). However whether such deficits are related to autism per se, or to associated intellectual disability is unclear. This paper examines executive functions in a group of children with ASD (N = 54, all IQ?70) in relation to a typically developing control group individually matched on the basis of age, gender, IQ and vocabulary. Significant impairments in the inhibition of prepotent responses (Stroop, Junior Hayling Test) and planning (Tower of London) were reported for children with ASD, with preserved performance for mental flexibility (Wisconsin Card Sorting Task) and generativity (Verbal Fluency). Atypical age-related patterns of performance were reported on tasks tapping response inhibition and self-monitoring for children with ASD compared to controls. The disparity between these and previous research findings are discussed. A multidimensional notion of executive functions is proposed, with difficulties in planning, the inhibition of prepotent responses and self-monitoring reflecting characteristic features of ASD that are independent of IQ and verbal ability, and relatively stable across the childhood years.     

THE FUNCTIONS OF ASSESSMENT: IMPLICATIONS FOR SELECTION AND DEVELOPMENT OF DEVICES FOR ASSESSING REPERTOIRES IN CLINICAL,EDUCATIONAL, AND OTHER SETTINGS

An attempt is made to identify the many different functions that assessment of an individual's repertoire can serve. Implications of these functions for the character of and evidence about assessment devices are suggested. The functions fall into two general groups, those which influence decisions regarding an individual learner, and those which influence policy, program development, and scientific knowledge. The first group of functions is presented in a rough chronological sequence such that they form a “behavioral assessment funnel,” beginning with functions involving broad-band assessment to identify likely persons and skill areas, and narrowing to the precise pinpointing, monitoring, and follow-up functions. The contribution of behavior analysis and behavior therapy to assessment methodology in this sequence is identified as well as the areas where more traditionally conceived methods are still useful. The second group of functions and behavioral contributions to it are then discussed.     

Determination of a behavioral transfer function: White-noise analysis of session-to-session response-ratio dynamics on concurrent VI VI schedules

Six pigeons were exposed to concurrent variable-interval schedules in which the programmed reinforcer ratios changed from session to session according to a pseudorandom binary sequence. This procedure corresponded to the stochastic identification paradigm (“white-noise experiment”) of systems theory and enabled the relation between log response ratios in the current session and log reinforcer ratios in all previous sessions to be determined. Such dynamic relations are called linear transfer functions. Both nonparametric and parametric representations of these, in the form of “impulse-response functions,” were determined for each bird. The session-to-session response ratios resulting from the session-to-session pseudorandom binary variations in reinforcer ratios were well predicted by the impulse-response functions identified for each pigeon. The impulse-response functions were well fitted by a second-order dynamic model involving only two parameters: a time constant and a gain. The mean time constant was 0.67 sessions, implying that the effects of abrupt changes in log reinforcer ratios should be 96% complete within about five sessions. The mean gain was 0.53, which was surprisingly low inasmuch as it should equal the sensitivity to reinforcement ratio observed under steady-state conditions. The same six pigeons were subjected to a similar experiment 10 months following the first. Despite individual differences in impulse-response functions between birds within each experiment, the impulse-response functions determined from the two experiments were essentially the same.