Block Design Task Research Articles

Quantifying qualitative features of Block Design performance among healthy older adults

Block Design tasks are neuropsychologically valuable, but standard scoring sacrifices potentially useful information that could elucidate the cognitive processes underlying performance failures. Qualitative indices that were proposed in the WAIS-R-NI [Kaplan, E., Fein, D., Morris, R., & Delis, D. (1991). The WAIS-R as a neuropsychological instrument [Manual]. San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation] should help to remedy this situation but have received little research attention. We present WAIS-R Block Design data for 177 healthy older adults (aged 50-90) incorporating several qualitative measures, outlining normative ranges and examining age differences. Proportional scoring, counts of single-block placement and rotation errors, counts of parameter-violating errors such as breaking configuration, and availability of implicit grid information all offer potentially valuable supplementary data that can enrich clinical interpretation of Block Design protocols.

Quantifying qualitative features of Block Design performance among healthy older adults

Block Design tasks are neuropsychologically valuable, but standard scoring sacrifices potentially useful information that could elucidate the cognitive processes underlying performance failures. Qualitative indices that were proposed in the WAIS-R-NI [Kaplan, E., Fein, D., Morris, R., & Delis, D. (1991). The WAIS-R as a neuropsychological instrument [Manual]. San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation] should help to remedy this situation but have received little research attention. We present WAIS-R Block Design data for 177 healthy older adults (aged 50–90) incorporating several qualitative measures, outlining normative ranges and examining age differences. Proportional scoring, counts of single-block placement and rotation errors, counts of parameter-violating errors such as breaking configuration, and availability of implicit grid information all offer potentially valuable supplementary data that can enrich clinical interpretation of Block Design protocols.

Strategy development in a block design task

For 90 subjects aged 12, 17, and adult, strategy development was studied in a computerized task derived from Kohs blocks. The effect of a structural variable was tested: the nature of the gestalts (triangles or stripes) in the test designs. Based on the automatic analysis of several behavior indices, three strategies were identified: global and analytic, but also “synthetic,” in which the subject solved the problem by relying on gestalts. The results showed that (1) younger subjects more often used the global strategy and (2) designs with stripes turned out to be far more complex than ones with triangles, especially for the younger subjects. The results are discussed in the light of recent work in cognitive and developmental psychology.

Visual Perception and Asperger Syndrome: Central Coherence Deficit or Hierarchization Deficit?

The performance of eight adults diagnosed with Asperger syndrome was compared with the performance of a control group of adults on a range of perceptual tasks (the Block Design Task, the Embedded Figures Task, the Hierarchical Stimuli Task and the Impossible Figures Task). The tasks were selected in an attempt to test two models of perceptual deficit suggested to account for the pattern of perceptual performance typically associated with autistic spectrum disorders: the central coherence deficit model and the hierarchization deficit model. The aim of the investigation was to determine whether either model was appropriate as an explanation of perceptual skills amongst people with Asperger syndrome. Tentative support for the hierarchization deficit model was demonstrated.

Neuropsychological and conditioned blocking performance in patients with schizophrenia: assessment of the contribution of neuroleptic dose, serum levels and dopamine D2-receptor occupancy.

Patients with schizophrenia show impairments of attention and neuropsychological performance, but the extent to which this is attributable to antipsychotic medication remains largely unexplored. We describe here the putative influence of the dose of antipsychotic medication (chlorpromazine equivalents, CPZ), the antipsychotic serum concentration of dopamine (DA) D2-blocking activity and the approximated central dopamine D2-receptor occupancy (DA D2-occupancy), on conditioned blocking (CB) measures of attention and performance on a neuropsychological battery, in 108 patients with schizophrenia (compared with 62 healthy controls). Antipsychotic serum concentration and D2-occupancy were higher in patients with a paranoid versus non-paranoid diagnosis, and in female versus male patients (independent of symptom severity). Controlling for D2-occupancy removed the difference between high CB in paranoid and impaired low CB in non-paranoid patients. Similar partial correlations for antipsychotic drug dose and serum levels of DA D2-blocking activity with performance of the trail-making and picture completion tests (negative) and the block-design task (positive) showed the functional importance of DA-related activity. High estimates of central DA D2-occupancy were related to impaired verbal fluency but were associated with improved recall of stories, especially in paranoid patients. This, the first study of its kind, tentatively imputes a role for DA D2-related activity in left frontal (e.g. CB, verbal fluency) and temporal lobe functions (verbal recall) as well as in some non-verbal abilities mediated more in the right hemisphere in patients with schizophrenia.

Neurophysiological correlates of the block design task as revealed by PET

Neurophysiological correlates of the block design task as revealed by PET

Global Spatial Organization by Individuals with Williams Syndrome

Williams syndrome is a genetically determined disorder with a characteristic cognitive profile. Overall IQ tends to be lower than in the normally developing population, performance on measures of linguistic ability is somewhat higher than would be expected given the levels of IQ typical for this group, and there is a particular weakness in visuospatial construction (e.g., block design tasks). A wellknown hypothesis about the deficit in visuospatial construction is that people with Williams syndrome are strongly inclined to be local spatial processors. We report a test of this hypothesis that used a visual search task sensitive to spontaneous global spatial organization. A sample of adults with Williams syndrome produced a pattern of data demonstrating that they spontaneously organize spatial displays at a global level. Indeed, individuals with Williams syndrome found it more difficult to change from global to local processing than participants with normal intelligence. We suggest that the primary problem with visuospatial construction in people with Williams syndrome is not in the salience of single levels of organization but rather in the difficulty of changing between organizations.

Age at onset and visuocognitive disturbances in Alzheimer disease.

We examined the relation of age at onset and visuocognitive disturbances in Alzheimer disease (AD) using a large sample of patients, quantitative neuropsychological measures, and multivariate statistics controlling for gender, education, stage of dementia, and disease duration. Significant positive coefficients were obtained with forward and backward digit and visual spans, visual counting, copying Rey complex figure, and block design task. The results indicated that patients with early-onset AD performed worse than late-onset AD patients on these tasks. There was no significant effect of age at onset on identification of overlapping figures, visual form discrimination, or Raven's colored progressive matrices. These findings confirm the greater attentional and visuospatial impairments in early onset patients when these confounding factors were controlled for, although no significant effect of age at onset in visuoperceptual function was observed.

Cognitive impairment in young adults with infratentorial infarcts.

To describe cognitive functions and functional outcome in young patients with isolated infratentorial infarcts. Contemporary knowledge implies a cerebellar contribution to cognitive behavior. Neuropsychological examination of patients with selective cerebellar lesions provides an opportunity to document the existence and nature of clinically relevant cognitive manifestations from lesions of the cerebellum. Prospective case series. The patients were assessed acutely and at 4 and 12 months after onset. Twenty-four patients from a consecutive series of 105 patients aged 18 to 44 years with cerebral infarction had a brain stem or cerebellar infarction. Fourteen age-matched controls were used for neuropsychological comparisons. Evaluation included MRI, angiography, and transesophageal echocardiography. Disability and neurologic dysfunction were assessed by the modified Rankin scale, NIH stroke scale, and maximal working capacity. A comprehensive neuropsychological battery was performed at baseline in 20 of the 24 patients. Eighteen patients had a cerebellar infarct. Two patients had lateral medullary infarcts, and two isolated pontine infarcts. Twenty-two patients had a favorable outcome according to the modified Rankin scale (grade 0-2) and the NIH scale. In contrast, 12 patients were granted full or partial sick leave at the 4 months follow-up, and 10 patients at 12 months. Patients generally performed worse than controls in various aspects of cognitive function, especially in tasks concerning working memory, the temporary storage of complex information, and cognitive flexibility. Measures of verbal IQ (r = -0.74) and performance IQ (r = -0.78) were related to the size of the infarct. The block design task performance in the early poststroke period predicted maximal working capacity at 12 months. Cerebellar damage impairs central aspects of attention and visuospatial skills. In contrast, intelligence and episodic memory remain unchanged. When the lesion involves large portions of the cerebellar hemispheres, changes concerning broad areas of intelligence may occur. The prognosis is favorable for neurologic dysfunction, but cognitive deficits may prevent return to work.

Comparison of static and dynamic assessment procedures and their relation to independent performance.

Relationships between pretraining skills, ease of learning, and later posttest performance were assessed in both spatial (i.e., block design) and verbal (i.e., similarities) task domains. Eighty-four preschool children (M = 4 years 11 months, range = 4 years 0 months to 5 years 6 months) were given pretests, training, and posttests on block design and similarities tasks. Two measurement models and four structural models were tested to determine (a) if pretest, learning and posttest performances were domain specific, and (b) if paths from both pretests and learning assessments were needed to predict posttest performance. The measurement model that fit the data maintained separate verbal and spatial domains. The structural model that best fit the data included paths from both pretest and learning assessments to posttest performances within each domain. Thus, L. S. Vygotsky's (1978) claim that pretest and learning assessments together are better indicators of an individual's ability than either measure alone was supported.

The influence of pattern type on children's block design performance.

This study sought to determine what factors contribute to normal developmental changes in performance on the block design task. The target models were systematically varied to emphasize global, intermediate, and local pattern structures. One hundred children between 4.5 and 9 years of age were tested in the first experiment. Correct performance and error types differed significantly as a function of age and pattern type. Broken configuration errors were particularly common for the global patterns. In the second experiment, 48 children between 4.5 and 8 years of age were tested using designs with a superimposed grid (cued condition). Error rates were lower in the cued condition and broken configuration errors were less frequent. These results suggest that children have more difficulty parsing more cohesive patterns, but they can modify their strategies when the square matrix is provided by the pattern structure.

The influence of mirror reversals on male and female performance in spatial tasks: A componential look

O'Boyle and Hoff ( Neuropsychologia, 25, 977–982, 1987) reported that females were faster and more accurate than males at mirror-tracing the outline of random shapes. To account for this differential performance, the authors advanced two alternative explanations. The first was a ‘Spatial Stroop’ effect which suggested that, because of their enhanced spatial ability, males are especially disadvantaged in escaping the misleading visual feedback provided by the mirror, resulting in slower and less accurate tracings. The second was a ‘manipulospatial’ hypothesis which suggested that the tracing advantage was related to female superiority in fine-detailed motor control, and perhaps, differential practice at performing skilled motor tasks in mirror-reversed contexts. In the present study, two experiments were conducted to assess the relative viability of these explanations. In Experiment 1, the WAIS-R Block Design task was performed within and outside the context of a mirror. This was done to determine if the observed female advantage was restricted to mirror-tracing per se, or generalizable to other manipulospatial tasks. In Experiment 2, a mental rotation task was performed within and outside the context of a mirror. The latter was designed to reveal if the removal of the motor component would affect the obtained sex difference. The present findings suggest that as long as some form of precision motor manipulation is required, females are superior to males at mirror-reversed spatial tasks. However, when the motor component is eliminated, a male performance advantage emerges in both normal and mirror-reversed contexts, suggesting that the manipulospatial hypothesis is the more viable explanation.

Why do autistic individuals show superior performance on the block design task?

Systematic variations of the block design task were given to 20 autistic, 33 normal and 12 mildly retarded subjects. Designs were contrasted which were either "whole" or segmented, rotated or unrotated, and which did or did not contain obliques. Only segmentation, but neither of the spatial orientation factors, revealed a significant group difference. Autistic subjects, regardless of age and ability, performed better than controls when presented with unsegmented designs. This result suggests that they need less of the normally required effort to segment a gestalt, and thus supports the hypothesis of weak central coherence as a characteristic of information processing in autism.

Nontemporal measures of performance on a computerized block design task

A computerized block design task was developed which records temporal and nontemporal measures of performance. This study evaluates the reliability of the measures and reports their intercorrelations. With one exception, the measures showed moderate to good reliability. The results indicate that increasing the difficulty of the task and testing a more diverse sample may be necessary for improved reliability. A nontemporal method of scoring a block-design task would be useful when testing persons who have handicaps affecting motor skills, but no central nervous system deficits.

The effects of bilingualism on preschoolers' private speech

This study was designed to examine the effects of bilingualism on the development of self-regulatory private speech. The sample consisted of 34 Spanish-speaking preschoolers learning English as a second language in the context of a bilingual preschool program in El Paso, Texas. Protocols of spontaneous private speech were obtained with video recorders while children worked by themselves in a corner of the preschool classroom on block design, classification, and story-sequencing tasks. Instructions were given bilingually, in order to encourage the use of both languages within the experimental setting. Results show that the private speech of bilingual preschoolers appears to develop normally: Namely, it follows a curvilinear relation to mental age, increases with task difficulty, and is gradually subvocalized in the form of whispers and mutterings. The findings suggest that the experience of learning a second language in the context of an additive bilingual preschool program has positive effects both on the frequency of private speech and on the number of diverse functions for which it is used. No evidence was found, however, in support of the hypothesis that bilingual children use their two languages to “code switch” while working on challenging cognitive tasks.

Analysis of problem solving strategies on the Kohs block design test

The present study investigated the strategies involved in the Kohs Block Design task from a cognitive point of view. One purpose was to improve the classical distinction between syncretic and analytic strategies. An other goal was to determine whether subjects show the same strategies according to their field dependence level. Finally, we analysed the way the subjects described their own strategies in order to assess their metacognitive skills.

Hemispheric Specialization in Visual, Tactile and Crossmodal Assembling Tasks

There is ample evidence that the right or non-language related hemisphere of the brain is superior in processing of spatial information. This issue appears less clear when a task involves elaborate mental operations that require the integration of spatial information at a stage beyond mere perceptual discrimination. Examples are block design tasks, which are frequently used as estimates of general intelligence. Results of these tests have been contradictory as to whether there is a right hemispheric advantage for their execution. This study was aimed to look at a possible hemispheric preponderance in block design tasks comparing visual, tactile and crossmodal spatial performance. A two-dimensional template had to be reproduced by arranging cubes with surfaces different in both colour and texture. In the visual condition the template was given in the visual modality and the cube arrangement was under visual control. In the tactile condition the template was presented tactually and the cube assembly had to be done under entirely tactual control. In the crossmodal condition the template was presented visually and the assembly was restricted to tactual control. Task completion time (TCT) and number of correct responses (NCR) were compared between right hand and left hand responses. Only in the crossmodal condition a constant left hand superiority of performance was found. Non-crossmodal tasks did not show a constant hemispheric preponderance. In the tactile condition allowing for easy differentiation of input to one or the other hemisphere TCTs varied only according to the compatibility of side of afferent input and side of assembling action irrespective of the hemisphere engaged.It is concluded that mental operations requiring spatial assembling not necessarily engage the non-dominant hemisphere to a larger extent than the language .

Manual Asymmetries During Verbal and Spatial Block Design Construction

To examine the effects of cognitive task demands on manual asymmetry, 40 male and 40 female college students were asked to simultaneously construct two replicas of a verbal or spatial block design task, one with each hand. In addition, a verbal and spatial competition task also was performed concurrently with each of the two primary tasks in a dual task paradigm. The spatial primary task elicited increased left-hand use relative to baseline performance, but only in males. An increase in right-hand use was observed during performance of the verbal primary task, again primarily among males. The effects of concurrent cognitive tasks on hand utilization were observed only in subjects performing the verbal primary task, and only when the concurrent task was verbal in nature. Implications for theories of functional cerebral lateralization are discussed.

The Behavioral and Cognitive Response of Brain-Damaged Patients to Therapist Instructional Style

Two instructional styles, one task-oriented and one patient-oriented, were investigated for their effect on the nonverbal behavior and immediate cognitive performance of patients with brain damage. A repeated measures design was used to address the hypotheses that the patient-oriented style relative to the task-oriented style would create greater patient nonverbal positivity and self-directiveness and result in better patient performance on a block design task. Twenty-eight patients received two instructional periods from one of seven therapists who used the same style or alternate styles during the two periods. As predicted, during the patient-oriented style of instruction the patient displayed more nonverbal positivity and self-directiveness than during the task-oriented style. On the other hand, the task-oriented style during the first instructional period led to higher scores on the subsequent block design task while the patient-oriented style during the second period led to higher scores.

The role of the oblique effect in the block-design selection process

When attempting to reproduce units of a stimulus pattern in block-design construction tasks, subjects take longer to find a correctly oriented, two-color, diagonally divided surface than a correctly oriented solid-color surface. To examine the possible contribution of the diagonal orientation judgment itself to this outcome, a delayed matching-to-sample task was employed in which subjects attempted to find a match for either a diagonally divided or a perpendicularly divided half-red/half-white square. Slower response times for the former provided evidence that the greater difficulty in matching the two-color portions of the stimulus patterns in standard block-design tasks may be partially attributable to the oblique effect.