孤独症儿童动作发展障碍的神经机制

动作发展障碍(Developmental motor disorders)是孤独症谱系障碍的常见特征。通过系统回顾孤独症儿童动作发展障碍的神经科学研究, 发现γ-氨基丁酸和5-羟色胺浓度的改变及γ-氨基丁酸相关蛋白和Shank蛋白的表达异常不仅会损害中枢神经系统的发育, 而且还能导致突触兴奋性与抑制性失衡, 进而改变孤独症儿童小脑和大脑皮层运动区的功能连接。孤独症儿童小脑、基底神经节和胼胝体结构的改变对全脑的连通性产生了负面影响。神经生化机制和脑结构的异常共同导致了脑功能的异常, 最终造成孤独症儿童的动作发展障碍。此外, 动作发展障碍与孤独症核心症状共同的神经基础主要包括镜像神经元系统紊乱, 丘脑、基底神经节和小脑异常以及SLC7A5和PTEN 基因突变。未来研究需要关注与运动密切相关的其他神经递质, 如乙酰胆碱和多巴胺; 探索动作发展障碍神经网络的动态机制及其形成; 剖析该障碍的神经机制和自闭症核心症状神经机制的相互作用。     

大学生镜像书写及其机制探讨

本研究选择60名右利大学生(男女各半)为被试,在笔划水平上对十四种不同书写方式下快速书写时所出现的自发性镜像书写进行了研究。所有被试随机分为人数相等的实验、对照两组,组内男女各半。对实验组加以注意干扰。书写内容是十个阿拉伯数字(0—9)及十三个汉字组成的一句话。本研究结果表明:注意干扰、感觉的反馈调节,书写内容的特点是影响镜像书写出现的重要因素。作者在分析国内外有关镜像书写工作的基础上,进一步提出了“稳态系统”理论。     

非言语声音影响汉语听者言语声音的知觉

采用启动范式, 以汉语听者为被试, 考察了非言语声音是否影响言语声音的知觉。实验1考察了纯音对辅音范畴连续体知觉的影响, 结果发现纯音影响到辅音范畴连续体的知觉, 表现出频谱对比效应。实验2考察了纯音和复合音对元音知觉的影响, 结果发现与元音共振峰频率一致的纯音或复合音加快了元音的识别, 表现出启动效应。两个实验一致发现非言语声音能够影响言语声音的知觉, 表明言语声音知觉也需要一个前言语的频谱特征分析阶段, 这与言语知觉听觉理论的观点一致。     

动作记忆SPT优势效应的理论探讨

操作条件下的记忆效果好于语词条件下记忆效果的现象被称为动作记忆SPT效应。以往研究先后提出非策略加工、多通道加工、动作编码及情景整合理论来解释SPT效应,但这些理论解释仍存在矛盾和分歧,并阻碍了当前动作记忆领域的研究进展。为了解决目前的理论困境,本文详细地阐述了各理论的核心内容、发展历程及其存在矛盾和分歧的原因,并提出应以加工过程与加工对象相结合的视角来建立新的理论模型,以进一步促进实证研究的展开。     

幼儿动作发展与动作抑制研究

运用《儿童动作评估检查表》和停止信号任务,通过教师评定和即时行为实验方法,对40名4～6岁幼儿的动作发展水平、动作发展的内部结构、动作抑制的发展趋势和动作抑制与动作一般发展水平之间的关系进行了详细探讨。结果发现,4～6岁幼儿的动作处于一个迅速发展的时期;幼儿在自身与环境的静止或变动情况下,动作发展水平存在不平衡现象,当儿童自身静止并处于静止的环境中时,动作发展水平显著高于儿童自身移动和环境变动状态下的动作水平;男孩与女孩在动作发展的特定条件下存在差异。同时还发现,幼儿的动作反应抑制能力存在明显的年龄发展趋势,随着幼儿年龄的增长,其动作反应抑制能力增强;动作反应抑制能力与一般动作发展水平之间存在显著相关。     

儿童精细动作能力的发展及与其学业成绩的关系

研究了不同精细动作能力的发展、之间的内在联系及其与儿童学业成绩的关系。被试为151名4－8岁儿童以及30名本科生。精细动作能力的测查包括线条填画任务、图形临摹任务以及筷子技能测验。结果发现：（1）不同精细动作能力的发展速度从高到低依次为线条填画能力、图形临摹能力和筷子使用技能;（2）筷子使用技能与线条填画、图形临摹能力都显著相关,线条填画能力和年龄对筷子使用技能具有显著预测作用;（3）不同学业成绩儿童在各类精细动作能力上都存在显著差异。本研究说明,较基本的精细动作能力是复杂工具性技能发展的基础,同时在小学低年级阶段,儿童的精细动作能力与其学习活动之间存在密切联系。     

效应器在动作序列学习中的作用机制探析

动作序列学习是动作技能学习的重要组成部分,其中大部分动作序列学习都有效应器参与。目前有关效应器在动作序列学习中的作用机制存在两种观点：一是依存于效应器的观点,即动作序列技能的获得依附于具体的效应器,不可向其他效应器迁移,其学习的本质是建立反应或肌肉间的联结。二是独立于效应器的观点,即动作序列技能的获得并不依存于具体效应器,某个效应器获得的技能可以向其他效应器迁移,其学习的本质是建立抽象的刺激表征联结。效应器作用机制随练习程度、意识状态及其他条件的不同而有所变化。     

On the difference between internal and external reactions to legitimate and illegitimate frustrations: A demonstration

Although it is commonly assumed that the nature of any given frustration (defined as an unexpected barrier to goal attainment) affects the strength of the resulting instigation to aggression, the present paper argues that the type of frustration, ie, whether it is legitimate or illegitimate, can also influence the strength of an overt attack upon an available target independently of instigation intensity. Two groups of university men were unexpectedly kept from winning a money prize for working on a motor task, and one group was induced to attribute this failure to their partner's misbehavior (illegitimate frustration) while the other men were told the failure was due to the apparatus (legitimate frustration). In comparison to a nonthwarted control group, both frustrated conditions displayed the same level of internal arousal. However, when all subjects had an opportunity to “supervise” a second partner on an unrelated task soon afterwards, only those who had been illegitimately thwarted earlier were now more openly punitive toward this “innocent” individual than the control group. Possible reasons for these results are discussed, but it is emphasized that a distinction must be drawn between the internal and external reactions to a frustration.     

Another look at “tummy time” for primary plagiocephaly prevention and motor development

It is three decades since it was recommended that infants sleep on the back to reduce risk of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID). The SUID prevention program is known as “back to sleep” or “safe sleeping”, and this initiative is not questioned. Sleeping on the back is associated with, but not the cause of, the development of infant positional plagiocephaly, also known as deformational or a non-synostotic misshapen head when the skull sutures are open, not fused. This paper provides a synthesis of the history and impact of positional plagiocephaly. It includes a scoping review of plagiocephaly prevention facilitating motor development and reveals few articles on primary prevention which aims to prevent it developing in the first place. It is concerning that preschool-aged children with a history of infant plagiocephaly continued to receive lower developmental scores, particularly in motor development, than unaffected controls, and this may be a marker of developmental delay. Tummy-time (prone) for play is the mainstay of plagiocephaly prevention advice to minimize development of plagiocephaly and to facilitate infant motor development, particularly head control. While tummy-time has shown benefit for infant development, there is limited evidence of its effectiveness in preventing plagiocephaly and some evidence that it promotes only prone-specific motor skills. Most of the published literature is concerned with treatment post-diagnosis, in the form of reviews, or clinical notes. There is a plethora of opinion articles reinforcing tummy-time from birth for plagiocephaly prevention. The review shows that there are gaps in advice for early infant development of head control. An accepted test of head control in infants is “pull to sit” from supine which demonstrates antigravity strength of the neck flexors and coordination of the head and neck when the infant is drawn to sit from supine. This motor skill was cited as achievable by 4 months in the earliest paper on plagiocephaly in 1996. Physical therapists and others should revisit the mechanism of early infant head control development against gravity, particularly antigravity head, neck and trunk coordinated flexion movement in supine, as there has been little attention to early facilitation of this motor skill as a plagiocephaly prevention strategy. This may be achieved by considering “face time” as well as tummy time for primary prevention of plagiocephaly.