What Does the DAP:IQ Measure?: Drawing Comparisons between Drawing Performance and Developmental Assessments

Human figure drawing tasks such as the Draw-a-Person test have long been used to assess intelligence (F. Goodenough, 1926). The authors investigate the skills tapped by drawing and the risk factors associated with poor drawing. Self-portraits of 345 preschool children were scored by raters trained in using the Draw-a-Person Intellectual Ability test (DAP:IQ) rubric (C. R. Reynolds & J. A. Hickman, 2004). Analyses of children's fine motor, gross motor, social, cognitive, and language skills revealed that only fine motor skill was an independent predictor of DAP:IQ scores. Being a boy and having a low birth weight were associated with lower DAP:IQ scores. These findings suggest that although the DAP:IQ may not be a valid measure of cognitive ability, it may be a useful screening tool for fine motor disturbances in at-risk children, such as boys who were born at low birth weights. Furthermore, researchers who use human figure drawing tasks to measure intelligence should measure fine motor skill in addition to intelligence.     

Dynamic postural stability is not impaired by moderate-intensity physical activity in healthy or balance-impaired older people

Older people are increasingly being encouraged to be more physically active but this may lead to physiological fatigue, tiredness and other effects, which, at high levels, can adversely alter postural stability. However, older adults rarely perform physical activity at high intensities. This study aimed to determine whether a single bout of moderate-intensity physical activity, similar to that experienced during daily living, alters dynamic postural stability, particularly among those at risk of falling. Thirty-one healthy young, 33 healthy older and 21 balance-impaired older, adults performed a rapid, voluntary step-up task before and immediately after a 14 min, self-paced, moderate-intensity physical activity protocol. Timing of step components from vertical ground reaction forces, mediolateral displacement of center of pressure, and onset and amplitude of hip abductor muscle activity were recorded during the step task. All groups demonstrated the same changes after the activity, with slightly shorter weight-shift phase duration, smaller displacement of the center of pressure towards the stance leg during weight shifting, and earlier onset of stance leg gluteus medius activity. These changes indicate improved coordination of the step task after activity. Thus this study showed that dynamic postural stability is not adversely affected immediately following moderate-intensity physical activity, even among balance-impaired elderly.     

Repeated Exposure to Forward Support-Surface Perturbation During Overground Walking Alters Upper-Body Kinematics and Step Parameters

Locomotion requires both proactive and reactive control strategies to maintain balance. The current study aimed to: (i) ascertain upper body postural responses following first exposure to a forward (slip) support-surface perturbation; (ii) investigate effects of repeated perturbation exposure; (iii) establish relationships between arms and other response components (trunk; center of mass control). Young adults (N = 11) completed 14 walking trials on a robotic platform; six elicited a slip response. Kinematic analyses were focused on extrapolated center of mass position (xCoM), bilateral upper- and forearm elevation velocity, trunk angular velocity, and step parameters. Results demonstrated that postural responses evoked in the first slip exposure were the largest in magnitude (e.g., reduced backward stability, altered reactive stepping, etc.) and preceded by anticipatory anterior adjustments of xCoM. In relation to the perturbed leg, the large contra- and ipsilateral arm responses observed (in first exposure) were characteristically asymmetric and scaled to the degree of peak trunk extension. With repeated exposure, xCoM anticipatory adjustments were altered and in turn, reduced posterior xCoM motion occurred following a slip (changes plateaued at second exposure). The few components of the slip response that persisted across multiple exposures did so at a lesser magnitude (e.g., step length and arms).     

Are there attentional demands associated with haptic modalities while walking in young,healthy adults?

Study designA prospective, observational study.ObjectivesTo assess the attentional demands of using haptic modalities during walking using a multi-task paradigm in young, healthy adults.SettingBiomechanics of Balance and Movement (BBAM) Lab, University of Saskatchewan.MethodsTwenty-two (12 male) young, healthy adults performed walking trials with and without a verbal reaction time (VRT) task, as well as with and without the use of haptic anchors and light touch on a railing. Walking performance was evaluated using normalized stride velocity and step width, and dynamic stability was evaluated using step width variability and medial-lateral margin of stability (ML MOS) and its variability.ResultsThere were no significant differences in VRT when walking with and without added haptic input and no interactions between the added VRT task and added haptic input. Step width increased and variability of the ML MOS increased during trials with the VRT task compared to trials without the VRT task. The ML MOS decreased when using both haptic tools with a greater decrease when using light touch on the railing compared to when using the haptic anchors. Normalized stride velocity and step width decreased when using light touch on the railing only.ConclusionBoth haptic tools affected stability during walking. Using the railing to add haptic input had a greater effect on walking stability and was the only haptic tool to affect walking performance. Attentional demands should be considered in future research and applications of adding haptic input during walking.     

Nonlinear approach to study the acute effects of static and dynamic stretching on local dynamic stability in lower extremity joint kinematics and muscular activity during pedalling

Researchers have reported contradictory results on the effect of static and dynamic stretching on subsequent performance. Due to the importance of performance through static and dynamic stretching, the aim of this study is to investigate the acute effects of static and dynamic stretching protocols on local dynamic stability in lower extremity joint kinematics and muscular activities during pedalling using a nonlinear dynamics approach. Using a randomised crossover trial design, fifteen active males participated voluntarily in this research (mass: 69.02 ± 10.52 kg, height: 174.00 ± 6.74 cm, and age: 21.20 ± 1.47 years) and completed a pedalling trial in situations of without stretching (WS), after static (SS), and dynamic stretching (DS) of lower extremity. The lower extremity joint angles in the sagittal plane and the electrical activity of soleus, gastrocnemius medialis, tibialis anterior, vastus medialis, biceps femoris, and rectus femoris muscles were collected during 30 pedalling cycles at 70 rates per minute. The results of the repeated measure ANOVA indicated that the knee and ankle angle largest LyE was significantly lower in DS compared to WS and SS. The largest LyE in muscle activity is also significantly lower for all the muscles after DS compared to WS and SS (P ≤ 0.05). Regarding the positive effects of DS on the joints and the muscle activity local dynamic stability, it is suggested to use DS than SS in the warm-up program before repetitive activities like pedalling.     

Examining the Clinical Efficacy of Core Transformation: A Randomized Clinical Trial

This randomized clinical trial with a sample of adults (N = 129) from India explored the effects of a single core‐transformation session on symptom experience and psychological growth. The results over the total 8‐week study period indicated significant, moderate overall effect sizes (ds = 0.63 and 0.52) for symptom experience, emotional stability, affect balance, global well‐being, and purpose in life. Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.     

Integrating brain science research with intelligence research

Understanding the possible causes of differences in intelligence is crucial if children are to achieve their full potential. Such understanding has been hampered until recently, however, because researchers who study intelligence have neglected recent findings in the brain sciences suggesting that the brain develops in response to environmental stimulation. These findings have seemed to contradict intelligence research that suggests that intellectual abilities are inherited. However, the findings from intelligence research and the brain sciences can be integrated if it is accepted that there are individual differences in the process by which the brain adapts to the environment, such that some people's brains are better at adapting than others'. The findings obtained from intelligence research are consistent with this integrated model. Such an integration has implications for better understanding the nature of intelligence.     

儿童筷子使用技能特性的发展及其与学业成绩的关系

本研究考察了我国儿童筷子使用技能特性的发展特点及其与学业成绩的关系．结果发现：(1)在儿童筷子使用技能的精确性、时效性以及稳定性上,4岁组儿童和其他组都存在显著差异,5岁组和7岁、8岁组儿童存在显著差异,8岁组儿童的发展水平与成人仍有显著差异;(2)学业成绩好和差的儿童在筷子使用技能的稳定性上存在显著差异;(3)儿童筷子使用技能的时效性和稳定性与其语文成绩显著相关,与其数学成绩相关不显著。     

Family of Origin Predictors of Marital Outcomes Among Coptic Orthodox Christian Egyptian-American Couples

Despite the importance of family within the Coptic community, the extant literature on Coptic family relationships is remarkably limited. The purpose of this study was to explore parental marital quality and family of origin (FOO) quality as predictors of marital satisfaction and marital stability among Coptic Orthodox Christian Egyptian-American couples. Self-report survey data from 255 married Coptic couples living in the United States were analyzed using an actor-partner interdependence model. Results indicated husband FOO quality predicted both marital satisfaction (β =.51, SE?=?.18, p?=?.005) and marital stability (β?=?.51, SE?=?.22, p?=?.022) among Coptic husbands but not among Coptic wives. Results further indicated wife parental marital quality, wife FOO quality, and husband parental marital quality were not predictive of marital satisfaction or marital stability among Coptic husbands or wives. Clinical implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Gender Differences in the Relationships between Parental Marital Conflict,Differentiation from the Family of Origin,and Children’s Marital Stability

Abstract

This study aimed to examine gender differences in the relationships between parental marital conflict, differentiation from the family of origin, and children’s martial stability. Data were collected from 453 married individuals in South Korea. The results revealed that parental marital conflict was directly related to children’s marital stability albeit only among married men. Emotional cutoff and family projection mediated the relationship between parental marital conflict and children’s marital stability among men and women, respectively. These findings can be used to develop gender-specific evidence-based interventions that enhance marital stability (e.g., programs for married and premarital couples).