Processing Speed In Children Research Articles

Visual inspection time as an accessible measure of processing speed: A validation study in children with cerebral palsy.

This study examined the validity of a visual inspection time (IT) task as a measure of processing speed (PS) in a sample of children with and without cerebral palsy (CP). IT tasks measure visualization speed without focusing on the motor response time to indicate decision making about the properties of those stimuli. Participants were 113 children ages 8-16, including 45 with congenital CP, and 68 typically developing peers. Measures were a standard visual IT task that required dual key responding and a modified version using an assistive technology button with response option scanning. Performance on these measures was examined against traditional Wechsler PS measures (Coding, Symbol Search). IT performance shared considerable variance with traditional paper-pencil PS measures for the group with CP, but not necessarily in the typically developing group. Concurrent validity was found for both IT task versions with traditional PS measures in the group with CP. IT classification accuracy for lowered PS showed modest sensitivity and good specificity particularly for the modified IT task. As measures of PS in children with CP who are unable to validly participate in traditional PS tasks, IT tasks demonstrate adequate concurrent validity and may serve as a beneficial alternative measure of PS in this population.

The effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on information processing speed in children with intellectual disability

PurposeThe speed of information processing is known to play an important role in mental disorders; This study investigated the effect of the transcranial direct current stimulation on information processing speed in children with intellectual disabilities. MethodAn experimental design with a pretest- posttest control group was used. The study population consisted of 8- to 14-year-old children with intellectual disabilities attending special primary schools in Urmia, Iran. 36 children were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups (18 for each group). The experimental group received 10 sessions of tDCS with anode positioned over the F3 electrode (left DLPFC) and cathode over F4 (right DLPFC) The control group did not receive any intervention. Trail Making Test (TMT) was used to assess information processing speed. Data were analyzed using MANCOVA. ResultsThe results revealed that tDCS led to a significant increase in information processing speed in the experimental group compared to the control group. ConclusionThis study demonstrates that tDCS applied to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is effective in enhancing information processing speed in children with intellectual disabilities. These finding have important implications for the development of interventions aimed at improving cognitive functioning in children with intellectual disabilities.

Early nutritional influences on brain regions related to processing speed in children born preterm: A secondary analysis of a randomized trial.

Processing speed is a foundational skill supporting intelligence and executive function, areas often delayed in preterm-born children. The impact of early-life nutrition on gray matter facilitating processing speed for this vulnerable population is unknown. Magnetic resonance imaging and the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-IV Processing Speed Index were acquired in forty 5-year-old children born preterm with very low birth weight. Macronutrient (grams per kilogram per day) and mother's milk (percentage of feeds) intakes were prospectively collected in the first postnatal month and associations between early-life nutrition and the primary outcome of brain regions supporting processing speed were investigated. Children had a mean (SD) gestational age of 27.8 (1.8) weeks and 45% were male. Macronutrient intakes were unrelated, but mother's milk was positively related, to greater volumes in brain regions, including total cortical gray matter, cingulate gyri, and occipital gyri. First postnatal month macronutrient intakes showed no association, but mother's milk was positively associated, with volumetric measures of total and regional cortical gray matter related to processing speed in preterm-born children. This exploratory analysis suggests early-life mother's milk supports processing speed by impacting structural underpinnings. Further research is needed on this potential strategy to improve preterm outcomes.

Processing Speed in Gifted Children: A Clinical Neuropsychological Perspective

ABSTRACT Children with gifted intellects often earn lower scores on measures of processing speed than their nongifted counterparts. However, neuropsychological research indicates such a profile of scores is likely not due to a true innate neurocognitive processing speed deficit but is rather a statistical artifact resulting from the interference of common cognitive and behavioral idiosyncrasies inherent to giftedness, such as perfectionism and an aversion to completing paper and pencil tasks. The first aim of this study is to identify and explain the relative underperformance of children with gifted intellects on measures of processing speed. The second aim is to develop a neuropsychologically informed framework for clinically assessing processing speed in children with gifted intellects using alternative measures from the WISC–V. Clinical implications are discussed as they relate to the relative disabling effects of common gifted-related idiosyncrasies on the expression of their otherwise intact neuropsychological capabilities.

Network connectivity underlying information processing speed in children: Application of a pediatric brain tumor survivor injury model

Elucidating how adaptive and maladaptive changes to the structural connectivity of brain networks influences neural synchrony, and how this structure–function coupling impacts cognition is an important question in human neuroscience. This study assesses these links in the default mode and executive control networks during resting state, a visual-motor task, and through computational modeling in the developing brain and in acquired brain injuries. Pediatric brain tumor survivors were used as an injury model as they are known to exhibit cognitive deficits, structural connectivity compromise, and perturbations in neural communication. Focusing on information processing speed to assess cognitive performance, we demonstrate that during the presence and absence of specific task demands, structural connectivity of these critical brain networks directly influences neural communication and information processing speed, and white matter compromise has an indirect adverse impact on reaction time via perturbed neural synchrony. Further, when our experimentally acquired structural connectomes simulated neural activity, the resulting functional simulations aligned with our empirical results and accurately predicted cognitive group differences. Overall, our synergistic findings further our understanding of the neural underpinnings of cognition and when it is perturbed. Further establishing alterations in structural–functional coupling as biomarkers of cognitive impairments could facilitate early intervention and monitoring of these deficits.

Executive Function and Processing Speed in Children Living with Sickle Cell Anemia.

Executive function and processing speed difficulties are observed in children living with sickle cell anemia (SCA). The influence of processing speed on executive function is not well understood. We recruited 59 children living with SCA and 24 matched controls aged 8-18 years between 2010 and 2016 from clinics in the UK. Children completed tests in processing speed and cognitive flexibility, subdomains of executive function. MRI scans were conducted within one year of testing; oxygen saturation was obtained on the day of testing. Hemoglobin levels were obtained from medical records. Caregivers completed the executive function questionnaire. Hierarchical linear regressions found that hemoglobin, oxygen saturation, age, infarct status, and processing speed were not independent predictors for any model. However, for all cognitive flexibility tests, there was a significant interaction between infarct status and processing speed; children without silent cerebral infarction (SCI) with faster processing speed had better cognitive flexibility. Our findings indicate that, when interpreting executive function difficulties, it is important to account for the relationship between SCI status and processing speed. More research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms, but clinically, including executive function testing as part of clinic visits by embedding psychologists within the healthcare team would appear to be a critical step.

Fluent contextual reading is associated with greater synchronization of the visual and auditory networks, fluent reading and better speed of processing in children with dyslexia

The asynchrony theory of dyslexia postulates weaker visual (orthographical processing) and auditory (phonological processing) network synchrony in dyslexic readers. The weaker visual-auditory network synchronization is suggested to contribute to slow processing speed, which supports cognitive control, contributing to single-word reading difficulty and lower reading fluency. The current study aims to determine the neurobiological signature for this theory and to examine if prompting enhanced reading speed through deleted text is associated with a greater synchronization of functional connectivity of the visual and auditory networks in children with dyslexia and typical readers (TRs). We further aimed to determine if the change in visual-auditory connectivity prompted by deleted text is associated with reading fluency and processing speed abilities. Nineteen children with dyslexia and 21 typical readers ages 8–12 years old participated in a fMRI under two types of reading conditions: a still text condition and deleted text condition, in which letters was sequentially deleted from the screen. Effects of diagnostic group and condition on functional connectivity (FC) of visual and auditory networks were examined. Results revealed a significant overall effect of condition with a marginally significant Group × Condition interaction, such that as compared with TRs, children with dyslexia showed a significantly greater increase in visual-auditory FC between the still and deleted text conditions. Additionally, for children with dyslexia, this FC increase was significantly correlated with better reading fluency and verbal/nonverbal processing speed.These results support a relationship between the synchronization of the visual and auditory networks, fluent reading and increased speed of processing abilities in children with dyslexia, which can help guide fluency-based intervention strategies.

Processing Speed in Children with Traumatic Brain Injury

Abstract: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common cause of childhood morbidity and mortality. Information processing speed (IPS) is a central construct of neuropsychology and a mediator for a range of cognitive functions. In adults, the negative effects of TBI on IPS are well documented. This review qualitatively describes the impact of TBI on IPS in children and adolescents and examines various influencing factors. We included a total of 37 studies in the review that explored IPS using various clinical assessments. These clinical assessments often examine other neuropsychological functions besides IPS. In 29 of these studies, we found a negative effect of TBI on IPS. While injury severity has small but consistent effects on IPS, the effects of age at injury, time since injury, and gender were less evident. Because it is a central construct of neuropsychological functions, IPS should be assessed after TBI.

Spanish-speaking caregivers' use of referential labels with toddlers is a better predictor of later vocabulary than their use of referential gestures.

Variation in how frequently caregivers engage with their children is associated with variation in children's later language outcomes. One explanation for this link is that caregivers use both verbal behaviors, such as labels, and non-verbal behaviors, such as gestures, to help children establish reference to objects or events in the world. However, few studies have directly explored whether language outcomes are more strongly associated with referential behaviors that are expressed verbally, such as labels, or non-verbally, such as gestures, or whether both are equally predictive. Here, we observed caregivers from 42 Spanish-speaking families in the US engage with their 18-month-old children during 5-min lab-based, play sessions. Children's language processing speed and vocabulary size were assessed when children were 25 months. Bayesian model comparisons assessed the extent to which the frequencies of caregivers' referential labels, referential gestures, or labels and gestures together, were more strongly associated with children's language outcomes than a model with caregiver total words, or overall talkativeness. The best-fitting models showed that children who heard more referential labels at 18 months were faster in language processing and had larger vocabularies at 25 months. Models including gestures, or labels and gestures together, showed weaker fits to the data. Caregivers' total words predicted children's language processing speed, but predicted vocabulary size less well. These results suggest that the frequency with which caregivers of 18-month-old children use referential labels, more so than referential gestures, is a critical feature of caregiver verbal engagement that contributes to language processing development and vocabulary growth. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: We examined the frequency of referential communicative behaviors, via labels and/or gestures, produced by caregivers during a 5-min play interaction with their 18-month-old children. We assessed predictive relations between labels, gestures, their combination, as well as total words spoken, and children's processing speed and vocabulary growth at 25 months. Bayesian model comparisons showed that caregivers' referential labels at 18 months best predicted both 25-month vocabulary measures, although total words also predicted later processing speed. Frequent use of referential labels by caregivers, more so than referential gestures, is a critical feature of communicative behavior that supports children's later vocabulary learning.

3.118 Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Processing Speed in Children With a Reading Disorder

Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) is a clinical construct that is characterized by daydreaming, lethargy, feeling and appearing tired, lacking motivation, mental confusion, and slowed behavior and thinking (Becker, 2021; Penny et al, 2009). Past literature has shown mixed findings regarding the association between SCT and processing speed in ADHD and community samples. However, the association has not been examined in children with reading disorder (RD), who face deficits in processing speed and have shown problems with SCT.

A Preliminary Examination of the Impact of Working Memory Training on Syntax and Processing Speed in Children with ASD

In addition to deficits in pragmatics, children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have weaknesses in complex syntax and working memory (WM). These two deficits may be closely related. Previous work investigated the effects of WM training in developmental language disorders and showed significant improvement in both WM and syntax. The current study tests the impact of 12 h of WM training across 8 weeks in 30 children with ASD, aged 5 to 11. Results showed direct improvements on untrained WM tasks, as well as transfer effects to syntax and processing speed. Stronger WM led to better syntactic abilities. While they must be replicated, these exciting results provide impetus for further studies of WM interventions.

Age-related differences in processing speed in children can be explained by heterochronicity of human brain development

IntroductionAge-related differences in the processing speed have been observed in a great variety of tasks. In spite of the great amount of researches in this area, we know relatively little about the nature of this developmental tendency.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess whether age-related differences in reaction time (RT) can be explained satisfactorily in terms of a global age-related differences in processing speed alone.MethodsThe sample consisted of 48 4-year-olds, 50 5-year-olds, 46 6-year-olds children, and 35 adults. To investigate processing speed in children and adults we used the test battery consisted of three types of RT tasks: simple, discrimination, and choice.ResultsWe have revealed clear age-related differences in processing speed not only between children and adults but also between three age groups of children. However, using transformation method proposed by Madden et al. (2001) and Ridderinkhoff & van der Molen (1997) we have revealed that there are not only global age-related differences but also process-specific age-related differences in processing speed. Among children, age-related differences larger than predicted by the global difference hypothesis were evident when tasks required spatial orientation discrimination and stimulus–response rule complexity, but not for response suppression or reversal of stimulus–response contingencies.ConclusionsIt can be assumed that the observed process-specific, age-related differences in processing speed generally can be explained by the principle of heterochronicity of human brain development (Casey et al., 2005).

Cognitive Fatigue and Processing Speed in Children Treated for Brain Tumours.

The relationship between fatigue and cognition has not been fully elucidated in children and adolescent survivors of brain tumours. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential relationship between fatigue and cognitive impairments in these survivors, as this group is at risk for both types of deficits. Survivors of paediatric brain tumours (n = 45) underwent a neuropsychological testing on average 4 years after diagnosis. Mean age at follow-up was 13.41 years. Cognition was assessed with neuropsychological tests, and fatigue with the Pediatric Quality of Life (PedsQL™) Multidimensional Fatigue Scale. Regression analysis, adjusted for cranial radiotherapy and age at diagnosis, was used to investigate the associations between cognitive variables and fatigue subscales. Cognitive variables associated with fatigue were subsequently exploratively assessed. Significant associations were found for cognitive fatigue and measures of cognitive processing speed; Coding: p = .003, r = .583, 95% CI [9.61; 22.83] and Symbol Search: p = .001, r = .585, 95% CI [10.54; 24.87]. Slower processing speed was associated with poorer results for cognitive fatigue. Survivors with the largest decrease in processing speed from baseline to follow-up also experienced the most cognitive fatigue. Survivors expressed more cognitive fatigue compared to other types of fatigue. The association between cognitive fatigue and cognitive processing speed in children and adolescents treated for brain tumours is in concordance with the results previously reported in adults. Some survivors experience fatigue without impairment in processing speed, indicating the need for comprehensive assessments. Moreover, the study supports that fatigue is a multidimensional concept which should be measured accordingly.

The Structure of Processing Speed in Children and Its Impact on Reading

ABSTRACT The present study had two aims. First, we set out to evaluate the structure of processing speed in children by comparing five alternative models: two conceptual models (a unitary model, a complexity model) and three methodological models (a stimulus material model, an output response model, and a timing modality model). Second, we then used the resulting models to predict multiple types of reading, a highly important developmental outcome, using other well-known predictors as covariates. Participants were 844 children enrolled in third through fifth grade in urban public elementary schools who received 16 measures of processing speed that varied in the above dimensions. A two-factor complexity model that differentiated between simple and complex processing speed was the preferred model and fit the data well. Both types of PS predicted reading fluency, and complex (but not simple) PS predicted single word reading and comprehension. Results offer insight to the structure of processing speed, its relation to closely related concepts (such as executive function), and provide nuance to the understanding of the way processing speed influences reading.

Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Homocysteine at Birth and Fatty Acid Desaturase Gene Cluster Polymorphisms are Associated with Children's Processing Speed up to Age 9 Years.

Both pre- and early postnatal supplementation with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), arachidonic acid (AA) and folate have been related to neural development, but their long-term effects on later neural function remain unclear. We evaluated the long-term effects of maternal prenatal supplementation with fish-oil (FO), 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), placebo or FO + 5-MTHF, as well as the role of fatty acid desaturase (FADS) gene cluster polymorphisms, on their offspring’s processing speed at later school age. This study was conducted in NUHEAL children at 7.5 (n = 143) and 9 years of age (n = 127). Processing speed tasks were assessed using Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Children Color Trails Test (CCTT) and Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT). Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, folate and total homocysteine (tHcy) levels were determined at delivery from maternal and cord blood samples. FADS and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) 677 C > T genetic polymorphisms were analyzed. Mixed models (linear and logistic) were performed. There were significant differences in processing speed performance among children at different ages (p < 0.001). The type of prenatal supplementation had no effect on processing speed in children up to 9 years. Secondary exploratory analyses indicated that children born to mothers with higher AA/DHA ratio at delivery (p < 0.001) and heterozygotes for FADS1 rs174556 (p < 0.05) showed better performance in processing speed at 9 years. Negative associations between processing speed scores and maternal tHcy levels at delivery were found. Our findings suggest speed processing development in children up to 9 years could be related to maternal factors, including AA/DHA and tHcy levels, and their genetic background, mainly FADS polymorphism. These considerations support that maternal prenatal supplementation should be quantitatively adequate and individualized to obtain better brain development and mental performance in the offspring.

The Effect of Memory and Attention Adaptation Training on Working Memory and Processing Speed in Children Survived from Cancer

The Effect of Memory and Attention Adaptation Training on Working Memory and Processing Speed in Children Survived from Cancer

QEEG correlates of cognitive processing speed in children and adolescents with traumatic brain injuries

Both quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) and cognitive measures have been used to understand the underlying brain changes that occur in individuals after experiencing a traumatic brain injury, however, research exploring the relationship between qEEG patterns and cognitive test performance is scarcely studied in school-aged populations. The purpose of the present study was to explore first, the neuropsychological and academic deficits in young individuals with TBI; and second, the underlying relationship between qEEG patterns and cognitive test performance. Analyses included 21 school-aged participants whom have experienced a recent TBI and 15 school-aged participants whom have never experienced a TBI. Mean subtest and composite scores were compared and regression analyses were used to determine whether alpha band and beta band qEEG coherence values predicted processing speed measures. Results suggest that young individuals who experienced a recent TBI exhibit general deficits in cognition and academic skills beyond what would be expected in the general population. Further, beta band coherence with the frontal brain regions significantly predicted processing speed scores, providing evidence of a relationship between qEEG patterns and processing speed. This outlines a relatively inexpensive method for utilizing neural connectivity to verify cognitive deficits for school-aged individuals with a recent TBI.

Sluggish cognitive tempo in children with traumatic brain injuries

This exploratory study is the first to investigate whether the construct of sluggish-cognitive tempo (SCT) is related to slowed processing speed in children with traumatic brain injury (TBI), while also considering pre-morbid and injury variables. The study evaluated SCT, as measured by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), and processing speed, as assessed with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC–IV Processing Speed Index), in children who sustained TBI with a wide range of injury severity. Injury variables examined included the length of coma, presence of neuroimaging findings, and time between injury and assessment. Children’s cognitive reserve, as estimated by parental level of education, was a non-injury variable. The participants included 50 children, ages 6–16 years, without co-morbid neurological or psychiatric conditions who underwent a neuropsychological evaluation within 1–12 months after injury. Results indicated no significant correlations between SCT and any of the WISC–IV index scores. Children with a moderate-severe TBI did not differ from those with uncomplicated mild TBI on SCT but they had statistically significant lower WISC–IV Processing Speed. Although parents of children with uncomplicated mild TBI had higher levels of education as compared to parents of children with moderate-severe TBI, there was no statistically significant relationship between the level of parental education and either SCT or Processing Speed. This study suggests that SCT, as measured by the CBCL, is not a sensitive measure of sequelae of pediatric TBI.

Age-related differences in processing speed in children

The present study investigated children's capabilities of utilizing analytic strategies in Chinese character learning across different stages of reading development. It employed an associative learning paradigm with pseudocharacters and invented characters as stimuli, which were assigned to regular and irregular conditions based on print-sound-meaning regularity. Participants were 165 Chinese children (65 kindergarteners, 53 primary second graders and 47 primary fifth graders). Repeated measures ANOVA results showed a significant condition x grade interaction effect in pseudocharacter learning, suggesting that regularity exerted different levels of influences on pseudocharacter learning performance across age groups. Further paired-sample t-test results indicated that kindergarteners' learning of pseudocharacters did not benefit from print-sound-meaning regularity as did their older counterparts. The study has lent support to phase/stage models of literacy development which posit that beginning readers rely on a holistic word learning method, which gradually morphs into an analytic approach to word learning as experience in reading develops.

IMPACT OF CHESS LEARNING ON PROCESSING SPEED OF SCHOOL-GOING CHILDREN

Processing speed is one of the measures of cognitive efficiency. It refers to the ability to automatically and fluently execute relatively easy or overlearned cognitive tasks, especially when high mental efficiency is required. Contemporary research has shown that the speed of information processing is dynamically associated with mental capacity, reading performance, and development and reasoning by the conservation of cognitive resources and the efficient use of working memory. While the impact of chess training on intelligence and academic performance has been unequivocally established, its impact on processing speed needs to be researched. This study, funded by the Cognitive Science Research Initiative, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, analyzed the effect of 1-year chess training on the processing speed of children. A pretest–posttest with control group design was used, with 88 children in the experimental group and 90 children in the control group. The sample was selected from children studying in four city schools (grades 3–9), which included both genders. The experimental group underwent weekly chess training for 1 year, while the control group was involved in extracurricular activities. Processing speed was measured by two subtests of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV India), namely Coding and Symbol Search. The training methodology comprised Winning Moves Chess Learning Program with the demonstration board, on-the-board playing and training, chess exercise through workbooks, and working with chess software. Analysis revealed significant gains in processing speed in the experimental group compared with the control group. The present study clearly establishes a link between chess training and processing speed. Enhancing processing speed in children is especially important because of its relationship to other cognitive and academic performance indicators.