The purpose of this study was to determine whether neurotraining to discriminate a moving test pattern relative to a stationary background, figure-ground discrimination, improves vision and cognitive ...functioning in dyslexics, as well as typically-developing normal students. We predict that improving the speed and sensitivity of figure-ground movement discrimination (
neurotraining) acts to remediate visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream, thereby improving processing speed, reading fluency, and the executive control functions of attention and working memory in both dyslexic and normal students who had
neurotraining more than in those students who had no neurotraining. This prediction was evaluated by measuring whether dyslexic and normal students improved on standardized tests of cognitive skills following neurotraining exercises, more than following computer-based guided reading (
(
)). The neurotraining used in this study was visually-based training designed to improve magnocellular function at both low and high levels in the dorsal stream: the input to the executive control networks coding working memory and attention. This approach represents a paradigm shift from the phonologically-based treatment for dyslexia, which concentrates on high-level speech and reading areas. This randomized controlled-validation study was conducted by training the entire second and third grade classrooms (42 students) for 30 min twice a week before guided reading. Standardized tests were administered at the beginning and end of 12-weeks of intervention training to evaluate improvements in academic skills. Only movement-discrimination training remediated both low-level visual timing deficits and high-level cognitive functioning, including selective and sustained attention, reading fluency and working memory for both dyslexic and normal students. Remediating visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream revealed the causal role of visual movement discrimination training in improving high-level cognitive functions such as attention, reading acquisition and working memory. This study supports the hypothesis that faulty timing in synchronizing the activity of magnocellular with parvocellular visual pathways in the dorsal stream is a fundamental cause of dyslexia and being at-risk for reading problems in normal students, and argues against the assumption that reading deficiencies in dyslexia are caused by phonological or language deficits, requiring a paradigm shift from phonologically-based treatment of dyslexia to a visually-based treatment. This study shows that visual movement-discrimination can be used not only to diagnose dyslexia early, but also for its successful treatment, so that reading problems do not prevent children from readily learning.
To evaluate employee burnout, work conditions, resilience, and mindfulness at an academic medical center in a US medically underserved region during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
We surveyed ...employees from August 7, 2020 to January 17, 2021. Respondents completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), the Areas of Worklife Survey, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and the Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale (PHLMS) and answered a question about intention to stay in the present job until retirement. We performed exploratory stepwise logistic regression to evaluate associations between variables and intention to stay. We evaluated associations between variables with a structural equation model (SEM).
The 655 respondents mostly were White women providers, aged 50 years and younger, who worked in inpatient wards, emergency departments, or intensive care units. Respondents had high mean MBI emotional exhaustion (35 ± 12) and moderate MBI depersonalization (12 ± 6), despite high MBI personal accomplishment (43 ± 8), middle-range Areas of Worklife Survey results, and middle to high Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale scores (29 ± 5), PHLMS awareness scores (37 ± 6), and PHLMS acceptance scores (30 ± 8). There were 408 respondents (62%) with MBI latent profiles consistent with being burned out, but 447 respondents (68%) were willing to stay in their present job. Older age was associated with intention to stay (coefficient 1.1 ± 0.1;
< 0.001). The latent variable burnout structural equation model (burnout-SEM) constructed from the MBI subscales inversely predicted intention to stay (coefficient - 0.33;
< 0.001), and this relationship was mediated by age.
Burnout was prevalent despite substantial personal accomplishment, resilience, and mindfulness.
Abstract Psychopathic personality (psychopathy) is associated with a heightened risk for physical aggression, although the nature of this link remains unclear. Despite widespread claims that ...psychopathy is associated with reactive aggression, the evidence for this assertion is mixed. We provide a comprehensive review of behavioral, cognitive, and biological research on the relation between psychopathy and aggression, and conclude that although psychopathy is clearly associated with instrumental aggression, its association with reactive aggression is not robust. In fact, at least some research points to a potential protective role of psychopathy against reactive aggression. We conclude that future research must clarify the differential implications of the separable components of the broad psychopathy construct before the relations between psychopathy and physical aggression can be adequately understood.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Symptom exaggeration and feigned cognitive impairment occur commonly in forensic and medicolegal evaluations. As a result, methods to detect feigned cognitive impairment are an indispensable ...component of neuropsychological assessments. This study reports the results of two neurophysiological experiments using a forced-choice recognition task built from the stimuli of the Word Memory Test and Medical Symptom Validity Test as well as a new linguistically informed stimulus set. Participant volunteers were instructed either to do their best or to feign cognitive impairment consistent with a mild traumatic brain injury while their brain activity was monitored using event-related potentials (ERP). Experiment 1 varied instructions across individuals, whereas Experiment 2 varied instructions within individuals. The target brain component was a positive deflection indicating stimulus recognition that occurs approximately 300 ms after exposure to a stimulus (i.e., the P300). Multimodal comparison (P300 amplitude to behavioral accuracy) allowed the detection of feigned cognitive impairment. Results indicate that, for correct responses, P300s were equivalent for the simulated malingering and good effort conditions. However, for incorrect responses, feigned impairment produced reliable but significantly reduced P300 amplitudes. Although the P300 is an automatic index of recognition-even when knowledge is hidden-its amplitude appears capable of modulation by feigning strategies. Implications of this finding are discussed for research and clinical applications.
Full text
Available for:
IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
The four papers selected for publication provide compelling new evidence that faulty timing in the interchange of information between magno and parvo-cellular processing streams could be a unifying ...theme that links Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI, Chen et al.), Developmental Dyslexia (DD), and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but not Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD, Brown et al.). Growing evidence indicates that oscillatory entrainment to theta frequency spoken language in the auditory domain, along with cross-frequency theta-gamma coupling, support the phonological processing (i.e., the cognitive encoding of linguistic knowledge gathered from speech) which is required for reading. Archer et al. propose two possible models of a magno-dorsal visual TSF based on the coupling of theta and gamma oscillations: (1) A direct correlation whereby “bottom-up” magnocellular oscillatory entrainment of the visual domain by magnocellular populations phase locks to theta frequency eye movements during reading or (2) an inverse correlation by which attending to text triggers “top-down” low gamma signals from higher-order visual processing areas that organize magnocellular populations to synchronize to the theta frequency, and this drives the timing of eye movements and captures letter images at a higher frequency.
Taken together, the Coherence Principle of Multimedia Learning Theory and the Integrated Systems Hypothesis propose that co-occurring and semantically congruent verbal and visual information should ...be integrated into one mental representation that enhances memory. The purpose of this paper was to examine how learning pseudowords with matching versus mismatching gestures affects subsequent identification and integration of these newly learned pseudowords into read sentential contexts. Additionally, the pseudowords were manipulated to occur in either semantically congruent or semantically incongruent read sentential contexts, based on the pseudowords' learned definition. To investigate the research question, two experiments utilizing self-paced reading paradigms were employed. Results of Experiment 1 indicated partial support for the Integrated Systems Hypothesis. In Experiment 2, results indicated that pseudowords learned with matching gestures were identified more quickly and accurately after being read in semantically congruent sentences compared to semantically incongruent sentences, as was expected based on the Integrated Systems Hypothesis as well as the Coherence Principle of Multimedia Learning Theory. Additional results and implications are reported.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, NUK, PILJ, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background
The substantial evidence that neural timing deficits are prevalent in developmental disorders, aging, and concussions resulting from a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is presented.
Objective
...When these timing deficits are remediated using low-level movement-discrimination training, then high-level cognitive skills, including reading, attention, processing speed, problem solving, and working memory improve rapidly and effectively.
Methods
In addition to the substantial evidence published previously, new evidence based on a neural correlate, MagnetoEncephalography physiological recordings, on an adult dyslexic, and neuropsychological tests on this dyslexic subject and an older adult were measured before and after 8-weeks of contrast sensitivity-based left–right movement-discrimination exercises were completed.
Results
The neuropsychological tests found large improvements in reading, selective and sustained attention, processing speed, working memory, and problem-solving skills, never before found after such a short period of training. Moreover, these improvements were found 4 years later for older adult. Substantial MEG signal increases in visual Motion, Attention, and Memory/Executive Control Networks were observed following training on contrast sensitivity-based left–right movement-discrimination. Improving the function of magnocells using figure/ground movement-discrimination at both low and high levels in dorsal stream: (1) improved both feedforward and feedback pathways to modulate attention by enhancing coupled theta/gamma and alpha/gamma oscillations, (2) is adaptive, and (3) incorporated cycles of feedback and reward at multiple levels.
Conclusion
What emerges from multiple studies is the essential role of timing deficits in the dorsal stream that are prevalent in developmental disorders like dyslexia, in aging, and following a TBI. Training visual dorsal stream function at low levels significantly improved high-level cognitive functions, including processing speed, selective and sustained attention, both auditory and visual working memory, problem solving, and reading fluency. A paradigm shift for treating cognitive impairments in developmental disorders, aging, and concussions is crucial. Remediating the neural timing deficits of low-level dorsal pathways, thereby improving both feedforward and feedback pathways, before cognitive exercises to improve specific cognitive skills provides the most rapid and effective methods to improve cognitive skills. Moreover, this adaptive training with substantial feedback shows cognitive transfer to tasks not trained on, significantly improving a person’s quality of life rapidly and effectively.
We investigated preschool-aged children's understanding of early fractional tasks and how that performance correlates with fine motor skills and use of gestures while counting. Participants were 33 ...preschoolers aged 4 to 5 in two Southeastern public elementary schools. Children were tested individually in an interview-like setting. Mathematics tasks were presented in a paper and pencil format and the Grooved Pegboard test assessed fine motor skills. Finally, utilization of gestures was evaluated by taking a behavioral rating of the child's hand morphology, accuracy of gestures, and synchrony of gestures and spoken word while performing a counting task. Results indicate that performance on fractional reasoning tasks significantly predicts both fine motor ability and accuracy of gestures.
Full text
Available for:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
This study shows that perceived geographical slant affects postural stability. In 2 experimental conditions participants stood on a force platform that measured center of pressure (COP) during quiet ...stance while looking at a rigid, flat ramp surface of varying geographical slants. Using an otherwise identical procedure, participants in the second condition also provided verbal estimates of the steepness of the surface in degrees. Several measures of postural stability offered converging evidence that COP sway gradually increased as geographical slant decreased to 0 (horizontal ground). Specifically, COP was sensitive to changes in surface slant. Both the range and the standard deviation of COP showed the same trend of increased variability with decreasing geographical slant angles in both conditions. The area of the ellipse covering COP sway (based on a principal components analysis) showed the same tendency: ellipse area got larger for smaller, more horizontal slants. Nonlinear fractal dynamics of COP sway, as measured by the Hurst exponent of COP, pointed in the same direction: more fractal patterns, known to be correlated with increased muscle activity and decline in postural stability, were measured for shallower surface slants. There were no effects of verbal estimates on any of the measures, suggesting that explicit awareness of slant does not bias postural stability above and beyond the effects of visual environment.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
PDF
