Nonverbal Cognitive Performance Research Articles

Lexical production and cognitive control in sequential bilinguals immersed in two different contexts of language use

Recent investigations have highlighted that the linguistic characteristics of the contexts in which bilinguals are immersed might account for processing differences both at the lexical and cognitive levels. The present study examined the extent to which verbal and non-verbal cognitive performance in bilinguals varied as a function of two different contexts of language use: separate or integrated. The separate context was characterized by participants’ use of Spanish and English in specific situations and with different interlocutors, whereas the integrated context was characterized by the frequent use of both languages in the same situations and with the same interlocutors. Participants were two groups of young Mexican-born sequential Spanish-L1–English-L2 bilinguals ( n = 50, 34 females), who reported either the separate or integrated use of both languages. We found a positive correlation between overall linguistic exposure and the number of words produced in English in a Category Fluency task for bilinguals in the integrated context. Our results also showed that more frequent code-switching positively correlated with the magnitude of the interference effect as measured with a Flanker task, but only for participants in the separate context. These results suggest that the separate or more integrated use of the more dominant language (L1) and the less dominant one (L2) can impact bilinguals’ performance differently in verbal and non-verbal cognitive tasks.

Abstract TP78: Characteristics of Verbal and Non-Verbal Cognitive Function in Post-Stroke Aphasia Based on Language-Cognition Neuropsychological Processing Model

Introduction: Post-stroke aphasia (PSA) patients have different levels of phonetic, lexical, semantic, syntactic, and other linguistic domain impairment, and accompanied by non-verbal cognitive impairment. However, the association between verbal and non-verbal cognitive functions is not fully understood.In this study, we used the Chinese Aphasia Language Battery (CALB) and Loewenstein Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assessment (LOTCA) to fully evaluate the characteristics of verbal and non-verbal cognitive function impairment in PSA patients. Methods: A total of 105 stroke patients were recruited in this study. Language and non-linguistic cognitive impairments were evaluated by CALB and LOTCA, respectively. Patients in the PSA group were subdivided into the fluent aphasia group (FAG) and the non-FAG group. Potential confounders were adjusted in the analysis of covariance. Partial correlation analysis between the subscores of CALB and LOTCA was also performed. Results: This study showed that PSA patients had worse speech analysis ability, vocabulary processing ability, semantic processing ability, syntactic structure conversion ability, and non-verbal cognitive performance(P<0.001). Moreover, the scores of phonetic decoding, phonetic vocabulary production, noun category classification, total LOTCA, orientation, visual perception, motor use, and thinking operation were lower in the non-FAG compared with the FAG (p<0.05). The total score of LOTCA was positively correlated with the aphasia quotient (r=0.637, P<0.001) and scores of speech analysis ability, vocabulary processing ability, semantic processing ability, and syntactic structure conversion ability (r>0; P<0.0005). Conclusions: Based on the language-cognition neuropsychological processing model, this study adopted a comprehensive verbal and non-verbal cognitive assessment set of tests, and found that PSA patients have extensive phonological, lexical, semantic, syntactic, and grammatical processing disorders. Moreover, PSA patients often have more extensive and serious non-verbal cognitive impairments, and the severity of aphasia is significantly positively correlated with the degree of nonverbal cognitive impairment.

Selective short-term memory impairment for verbalizable visual objects in children with Developmental Language Disorder

BackgroundDevelopmental language disorder (DLD) affects the ability to acquire and make use of native language. Possible underlying cognitive mechanisms are related to memory functions. AimsThe aim was examination of the relationship between visual short-term memory of objects as well as audiovisual short-term memory, and particular nonverbal and language abilities. Methods and proceduresThe study included 7–9-year-old children with DLD and matched control group. Participants completed the Language Development Test, the Stanford-Binet IQ scale (SB5), and two short-term memory tasks: immediate recall of the visually presented pictograms and immediate recall of audiovisually presented sequences of syllables. Outcomes and resultsThe results revealed diminished levels of short-term visual memory for objects as well as audiovisual memory in children with DLD. However, there were no group differences in the control task of WM. Conclusions and implicationsResults supported the idea of diminished abilities in children with DLD to perform mental operations on verbalizable visual objects. Importantly non-verbal working memory ability, which cannot easily be supported by verbal representations, is at typical levels. This suggests that verbalization ability should be taken into account in the assessment of seemingly non-verbal cognitive functions among children with DLD.

Assessment of Neuroanatomical Endophenotypes of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Association With Characteristics of Individuals With Schizophrenia and the General Population

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with significant clinical, neuroanatomical, and genetic heterogeneity that limits precision diagnostics and treatment. To assess distinct neuroanatomical dimensions of ASD using novel semisupervised machine learning methods and to test whether the dimensions can serve as endophenotypes also in non-ASD populations. This cross-sectional study used imaging data from the publicly available Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE) repositories as the discovery cohort. The ABIDE sample included individuals diagnosed with ASD aged between 16 and 64 years and age- and sex-match typically developing individuals. Validation cohorts included individuals with schizophrenia from the Psychosis Heterogeneity Evaluated via Dimensional Neuroimaging (PHENOM) consortium and individuals from the UK Biobank to represent the general population. The multisite discovery cohort included 16 internationally distributed imaging sites. Analyses were performed between March 2021 and March 2022. The trained semisupervised heterogeneity through discriminative analysis models were tested for reproducibility using extensive cross-validations. It was then applied to individuals from the PHENOM and the UK Biobank. It was hypothesized that neuroanatomical dimensions of ASD would display distinct clinical and genetic profiles and would be prominent also in non-ASD populations. Heterogeneity through discriminative analysis models trained on T1-weighted brain magnetic resonance images of 307 individuals with ASD (mean [SD] age, 25.4 [9.8] years; 273 [88.9%] male) and 362 typically developing control individuals (mean [SD] age, 25.8 [8.9] years; 309 [85.4%] male) revealed that a 3-dimensional scheme was optimal to capture the ASD neuroanatomy. The first dimension (A1: aginglike) was associated with smaller brain volume, lower cognitive function, and aging-related genetic variants (FOXO3; Z = 4.65; P = 1.62 × 10-6). The second dimension (A2: schizophrenialike) was characterized by enlarged subcortical volumes, antipsychotic medication use (Cohen d = 0.65; false discovery rate-adjusted P = .048), partially overlapping genetic, neuroanatomical characteristics to schizophrenia (n = 307), and significant genetic heritability estimates in the general population (n = 14 786; mean [SD] h2, 0.71 [0.04]; P < 1 × 10-4). The third dimension (A3: typical ASD) was distinguished by enlarged cortical volumes, high nonverbal cognitive performance, and biological pathways implicating brain development and abnormal apoptosis (mean [SD] β, 0.83 [0.02]; P = 4.22 × 10-6). This cross-sectional study discovered 3-dimensional endophenotypic representation that may elucidate the heterogeneous neurobiological underpinnings of ASD to support precision diagnostics. The significant correspondence between A2 and schizophrenia indicates a possibility of identifying common biological mechanisms across the 2 mental health diagnoses.

Clinical, Cognitive and Neurodevelopmental Profile in Tetrasomies and Pentasomies: A Systematic Review.

Background: Sex chromosome aneuploidies (SCAs) are a group of disorders characterised by an abnormal number of sex chromosomes. Collective prevalence rate of SCAs is estimated to be around 1 in 400-500 live births; sex chromosome trisomies (e.g., XXX, XXY, XYY) are most frequent, while tetra- and pentasomies (e.g., XXXX, XXXXX, XXXY, XXXXY) are rarer, and the most common is 48, XXYY syndrome. The presence of additional X and/or Y chromosomes is believed to cause neurodevelopmental differences, with increased risk for developmental delays, language-based learning disabilities, cognitive impairments, executive dysfunction, and behavioural and psychological disorders. Aim of the Study: Our review has the purpose of analysing the neurocognitive, linguistical and behavioural profile of patients affected by sex chromosomes supernumerary aneuploidies (tetrasomy and pentasomy) to better understand the specific areas of weakness, in order to provide specific rehabilitation therapy. Methods: The literature search was performed by two authors independently. We used MEDLINE, PubMed, and PsycINFO search engines to identify sources of interest, without year or language restrictions. At the end of an accurate selection, 16 articles fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results and Conclusions: International literature has described single aspects of the neuropsychological profile of 48, XXYY and 49, XXXXY patients. In 48, XXYY patients, various degrees of psychosocial/executive functioning issues have been reported and there is an increased frequency of behavioural problems in childhood. Developmental delay and behavioural problems are the most common presenting problems, even if anxiety, depression and oppositional defiant disorder are also reported. They also show generalized difficulties with socialization and communication. Cognitive abilities are lower in measures of verbal IQ than in measures of performance IQ. Visuospatial skills are a relative strength compared to verbal skills. In patients with 49, XXXXY, both intellectual and adaptive functioning skills fall into the disability range, with better non-verbal cognitive performance. Speech and language testing reveals more deficits in expressive language than receptive language and comprehension. Anxiety, thought problems, internalizing and externalizing problems, and deficits in social cognition and communication are reported. Behavioural symptoms lessen from school age to adolescence, with the exception of thought problems and anxiety. Individuals affected by sex chromosome aneuploidies show testosterone deficiency, microorchidism, lack of pubertal progression and infertility. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is usually recommended for these patients: different studies have found that testosterone-based HRT benefit a wide range of areas initiated in these disorders, affecting not only neuromotor, cognitive and behavioural profile but also structural anomalies of the brain (i.e., increase of volume of grey temporal lobe matter). In conclusion, further studies are needed to better understand the neuropsychological profile with a complete evaluation, including neurocognitive and psychosocial aspects and to establish the real impact of HRT on improving the cognitive and behavioural profile of these patients.

Assessing executive functions in post-stroke aphasia-utility of verbally based tests.

It is increasingly acknowledged that, often, patients with post-stroke aphasia not only have language impairments but also deficits in other cognitive domains (e.g. executive functions) that influence recovery and response to therapy. Many assessments of executive functions are verbally based and therefore usually not administered in this patient group. However, the performance of patients with aphasia in such tests might provide valuable insights both from a theoretical and clinical perspective. We aimed to elucidate (i) if verbal executive tests measure anything beyond the language impairment in patients with chronic post-stroke aphasia, (ii) how performance in such tests relates to performance in language tests and nonverbal cognitive functions, and (iii) the neural correlates associated with performance in verbal executive tests. In this observational study, three commonly used verbal executive tests were administered to a sample of patients with varying aphasia severity. Their performance in these tests was explored by means of principal component analyses, and the relationships with a broad range of background tests regarding their language and nonverbal cognitive functions were elucidated with correlation analyses. Furthermore, lesion analyses were performed to explore brain–behaviour relationships. In a sample of 32 participants, we found that: (i) a substantial number of patients with aphasia were able to perform the verbal executive tests; (ii) variance in performance was not explained by the severity of an individual’s overall language impairment alone but was related to two independent behavioural principal components per test; (iii) not all aspects of performance were related to the patient’s language abilities; and (iv) all components were associated with separate neural correlates, some overlapping partly in frontal and parietal regions. Our findings extend our clinical and theoretical understanding of dysfunctions beyond language in patients with aphasia.

Development and evaluating the biopotency of ready to eat liver meat balls in fighting anaemia and vitamin A deficiency, improving selected nutritional biochemical indicators and promoting the cognitive function among mildly anaemic Egyptian children aged 3-9 years.

Ready to eat fried liver meat balls (LMB) were developed to fight anaemia and vitamin A deficiency and promote cognitive function. Randomised controlled trial consisting of two arms: control group with no supplement and LMB group receiving LMB supplement three times a week for 90 d. Criteria of evaluations included dietary assessment, anthropometric measurements, laboratory investigations and cognitive function by Wechsler test. Kinder Garten and primary school in Urban Giza. Sixty boys and girls aging 3-9 years. The LMB supplement contributed to significant increases in the intakes of high bioavailable Fe and vitamin A in the diets of all children. Initial overall prevalence of mild and moderate anaemia was 43 %, which disappeared completely from all children aging < 72 months and from 88 % of children ≥ 72 months after the 90 d dietary intervention with the LMB. Faecal systemic immune globulin A, urinary hydroxyproline index and urinary iodine excretion increased significantly (P < 0·05) only after the dietary intervention with the LMB supplement for 90 d. The standard scores of verbal and non-verbal cognitive function tests (Δ day 90-day 0) increased significantly (P < 0·05) among the LMB group compared with the respective changes observed among the control group. The increase in height-for-age Z score and blood Hb were good predictors for improvement in cognitive function. LMB supplement is effective sustainable nutritious biotherapeutic food in fighting hidden hunger and promoting the cognitive function.

School Readiness in 4-Year-Old Very Preterm Children.

The aims of this study were to identify the aspects of school readiness that best distinguish very preterm (VPT) preschoolers from full-term (FT) controls, determine the extent to which readiness problems in the VPT group reflected global cognitive weaknesses or more specific deficits, and identify distinct profiles of readiness problems. Fifty-three VPT (gestational age ≤ 30 weeks) 4-year-olds were compared to 38 FT (gestational age ≥ 37 weeks) controls on measures of global cognitive ability, executive function, motor skills, early literacy and numeracy, and psychosocial functioning. Latent class analysis (LCA) was also conducted to identify individual readiness profiles. The VPT group had the most pronounced difficulties on tests of spatial and nonverbal cognitive abilities, executive function, motor skills, phonological processing, and numeracy. The VPT group also had sex-related difficulties in processing speed, social functioning, and emotion regulation. These differences were evident in analyses of both continuous scores and rates of deficits. The VPT group’s difficulties in motor skills, and VPT females’ difficulties in social functioning and emotion regulation, were evident even when controlling for global cognitive ability. LCA suggested four profiles of readiness, with the majority of the VPT group assigned to profiles characterized by relative weaknesses in either cognitive abilities or psychosocial functioning or by more global readiness problems. The findings support the need to evaluate multiple aspects of school readiness in VPT preschoolers and inform efforts to design more targeted early educational interventions.

Relationship Between Cognitive Functions and Multilevel Language Processing: Data From Chinese Speakers With Aphasia and Implications.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between nonverbal cognitive functions and language processing of people with aphasia (PWA) by taking a data-driven approach, as well as multiple cognitive components and multilevel linguistic perspectives. It is hypothesized that language performance is differentially associated with cognitive processing of PWA, with executive functions (EFs) playing a stronger role in language tasks with increasing linguistic complexity. A language battery assessing word comprehension/production, sentence comprehension, and discourse production, together with a series of nonlinguistic cognitive tasks targeting simple/complex attention, short-term/working memory, or EFs, was administered to 53 Cantonese-speaking PWA. Cognitive factors extracted from principal component analysis applied to the cognitive battery served as predictors in four multiple regression analyses to predict PWA's performance at various linguistic levels. Two cognitive factors, representing (a) simple attention and memory and (b) EF, were extracted. The former predicted performance in word processing tasks, whereas EF significantly predicted performance in all language tasks with increasing contribution as a function of linguistic complexity. The results based on Chinese PWA provide comprehensive evidence for the view that language performance is the end product of interaction between linguistic and nonlinguistic functions and have clear implications for clinical management of PWA.

Predicting home discharge after inpatient rehabilitation of stroke patients with aphasia

ABSTRACT The early identification of the discharge setting from Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities is a primary goal in stroke-related research because of its clinical and socio-economic relevance. Several features have been identified as significant predictors of the discharge setting. Within cognitive deficits, aphasia is known to be a common and disabling condition that could influence rehabilitation outcome. However, it is often set as an exclusion criterion in stroke research. This study aims to investigate the predictive power of clinical variables, in particular specific language disturbances and nonlinguistic cognitive deficits, for discharge setting in post-acute stroke patients with aphasia after intensive multidisciplinary rehabilitation. In a sample of 158 patients, demographic, motor, language, and nonverbal cognitive data were retrospectively considered for the prediction of the discharge to home vs. another institutional setting. Univariate analysis identified relevant differences between groups and the significant variables were included in a logistic regression model. The results showed that better functional motor status, absence of dysphagia and unimpaired nonlinguistic cognitive profile independently predict the discharge to home. In particular, nonverbal cognitive functioning seemed to be specifically relevant within the aphasic population. The findings could be helpful for setting up the rehabilitation priorities and an adequate discharge arrangement.

Brief Report: An Exploration of Cognitive Flexibility of Autistic Adolescents with Low Intelligence Using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task.

Cognitive flexibility (CF) is the ability to shift between concepts or rules. Difficulty with CF is associated with autism (i.e., ASD) as it contributes to repetitive behaviours. However, little is known about CF skills of autistic adolescents with low intelligence. This study uses the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task (WCST) to assess the CF of 36 adolescents, all with a Weschler full-scale IQ between 50 and 85, 14 of whom had an ASD diagnosis. The results indicated no statistically significant differences in WCST performance between those with and without ASD. It was also found that performance IQ significantly contributed to the WCST performance in the ASD group only, suggesting an autism-specific role of non-verbal cognitive functioning in CF.

Non-verbal Intelligence in Unilateral Perinatal Stroke Patients With and Without Epilepsies.

Background: The risk factors for impaired cognitive development after unilateral perinatal stroke are poorly understood. Non-verbal intelligence seems to be at particular risk, since language can shift to the right hemisphere and may thereby reduce the capacity of the right hemisphere for its originary functions. Pharmaco-refractory epilepsies, a frequent complication of perinatal strokes, often lead to impaired intelligence. Yet, the role of well-controlled epilepsies is less well-understood. Here, we investigated whether well-controlled epilepsies, motor impairment, lesion size, lesion side, and lateralization of language functions influence non-verbal functions.Methods: We recruited 8 patients with well-controlled epilepsies (9–26 years), 15 patients without epilepsies (8–23 years), and 23 healthy controls (8–27 years). All underwent the Test of Non-verbal Intelligence, a motor-independent test, which excludes biased results due to motor impairment. Language lateralization was determined with functional MRI, lesion size with MRI-based volumetry, and hand motor impairment with the Jebson-Taylor Hand Function-Test.Results: Patients with epilepsies showed significantly impaired non-verbal intelligence [Md = 89.5, interquartile range (IQR) = 13.5] compared with controls (Md = 103, IQR = 17). In contrast, patients without epilepsies (Md = 97, IQR = 15.0) performed within the range of typically developing children. A multiple regression analysis revealed only epilepsy as a significant risk factor for impaired non-verbal functions.Conclusion: In patients with unilateral perinatal strokes without epilepsies, the neuroplastic potential of one healthy hemisphere is able to support the development of normal non-verbal cognitive abilities, regardless of lesion size, lesion side, or language lateralization. In contrast, epilepsy substantially reduces this neuroplastic potential; even seizure-free patients exhibit below-average non-verbal cognitive functions.

A longitudinal case study of six children with autism and specified language and non-verbal profiles

ABSTRACT Language skills as well as general cognitive skills show a considerable variation in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In previous studies, at least three profiles based on these skills have been suggested; autism with language and non-verbal cognitive skills within the average/normal range (ALN), autism with language disorder (ALD) without concurrent non-verbal cognitive disability, and autism with language disorder and cognitive disability, i.e. autism with a more general delay (AGD). The aim of the present longitudinal case study is to illustrate these three groups more thoroughly by presenting the developmental trajectories of children belonging to each profile. Six children were chosen based on their language and cognitive profiles from the first age 3-year assessment. They came from a larger group of children with ASD identified by autism screening at child health-care centres at age 2.5 years. These six children represent one boy and one girl from each of the three subgroups ALN, ALD and AGD, and were assessed a second time at age 5 and a third time at age 8 years, regarding expressive and receptive language skills, autistic severity and non-verbal cognitive skills. Although preliminary, our results indicate a rather stable developmental trajectory from age 3 to 8 years characterising children with autism based on language and non-verbal cognitive functioning. Thus, in order to help intervention planning and increase predictions of outcome, it seems important to specify both linguistic and cognitive level already at the first assessment in children with ASD.

Perceived Stress and Nonverbal Intellectual Abilities Are Differentially Related to Academic Success in Latinx and European American Rural Elementary Students

This study examines the relationship between perceived stress, nonverbal cognitive functioning, and statewide academic scores in both Latinx and European American elementary students in rural school districts. A total of 44 third graders participated in the study, including 13 Latinx students and 31 European American (EA) students. Perceived stress was self-reported by the Perceived Stress Scale for Children (PSS-C). A nonverbal measure of cognitive ability (The Wechsler Nonverbal Scale of Intelligence) was administered individually to each student, and statewide academic testing results were obtained for all participants. Latinx and EA children self-reported comparable rates of perceived stress. Both groups obtained similar nonverbal cognitive composite scores, but with distinct subtest differences. Both groups scored similarly on statewide standardized testing for math, although the EA group scored higher than the Latinx group on English. Binomial tests of differences between correlations revealed that relationships among perceived stress, nonverbal intelligence, and academic achievement differed significantly for the Latinx and EA students. Academic achievement for Latinx students is correlated with lower perceived stress and higher nonverbal cognitive ability, including overall ability and the matrices, coding, and spatial span subtests. For European American children, academic success is correlated with higher nonverbal scores on the matrices and picture arrangement subtests but is not related to perceived stress. Thus, ethnicity may differentially impact the relationship between perceived stress, nonverbal IQ, and academic achievement in rural elementary students, based in part on culturally relevant contextual factors.

Vulnerability to interrogative suggestibility from negative life events. A comparison of separated asylum-seeking youth and age-matched peers.

The consistency of young asylum-seeker's verbal testimony is often critical in determining the outcome of their claims. It is well established that an interviewee may change their answers to appease an interviewer or in response to suggestions. Experiencing adversity during childhood may increase vulnerability in such interview situations. Here, the vulnerability to interview pressure of asylum-seeking youth separated from their caregivers as minors was compared with age-matched peers. Thirty participants (16–23 years) completed the Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale (GSS2, measures of negative life events (NLEs) and non-verbal cognitive functioning measures. Vulnerability to interrogative suggestibility, non-verbal cognitive functioning and number of NLEs was compared between two groups. This preliminary data showed asylum-seeking youth as significantly more vulnerable to Shift; changes in response to interviewer feedback. NLEs and lower non-verbal cognitive functioning were significantly more common among the separated youth increasing vulnerability to Shift. The implications are discussed.

Speech-Language Profile Groups in School Aged Children with Cerebral Palsy: Nonverbal Cognition, Receptive Language, Speech Intelligibility, and Motor Function

ABSTRACT Purpose: To explore the relationship of intelligibility, receptive language, executive functioning, and motor skills to nonverbal cognitive skills among children with cerebral palsy (CP) in different speech-language profile groups. Method: Twenty-seven children with CP aged 10–12 years old participated in the study. They completed a battery of standard clinical assessments. The relationship of various skillsets with nonverbal cognitive ability was explored using correlational procedures. Additionally, we examined pairwise differences in nonverbal cognitive skills among profile groups. Cohen’s Kappa and Chi-square tests were used to study the consistency of receptive language and nonverbal cognitive performance. Results: Children who showed better nonverbal cognitive abilities demonstrated better motor, receptive language, and intelligibility skills. Nonverbal cognition was generally consistent with receptive language. Conclusion: Nonverbal cognitive impairment often co-occurs with language and speech motor impairment among children with CP. Speech-language profile groups are a useful framework for describing both communication and cognitive abilities.

Early Achievements for Education Settings: An Embedded Teacher-Implemented Social Communication Intervention for Preschoolers With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Purpose Early Achievements for Education Settings (EA-ES) is a teacher-implemented naturalistic developmental behavioral intervention for preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) targeting core social communication impairments. The purpose of this pilot randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) was to examine promise of efficacy of this iteratively developed intervention when implemented in authentic education settings. We examined (1a) whether a high level of implementation fidelity was attained by EA-ES trained teachers and (1b) whether their fidelity attainment differed from that of untrained teachers; and (2) whether the EA-ES intervention showed promise of improving child social, communication, and cognitive outcomes as determined by within- and between-group comparisons of children in EA-ES classrooms and children in classrooms randomized to the business as usual condition. Method Participants included six preschool teachers and 43 eligible preschoolers with ASD. Classrooms were randomized to EA-ES or business as usual. Analyses of intervention effects using baseline and postintervention data were conducted on teachers' fidelity of EA-ES implementation and children's performance on a proximal measure of social and communication behavior and on a distal standardized measure of verbal and nonverbal functioning. Results Teachers trained to implement EA-ES attained a high level of implementation fidelity, with significantly greater gains compared to untrained teachers. Children receiving EA-ES showed significantly greater gain from baseline to postintervention in frequency of produced initiation of joint attention and nonverbal cognitive functioning compared to children in business-as-usual classrooms. A trend toward significance for Group × Time effects was detected for frequency of spontaneous verbalizations produced, favoring the EA-ES group. Conclusions EA-ES shows promise of feasibility for teacher implementation in group contexts and for improving social communication and cognitive skills in preschoolers with ASD. Implications of results for future research and speech-language pathologist–teacher collaboration to increase language intervention dosage are discussed.

Cognitive and brain development is independently influenced by socioeconomic status and polygenic scores for educational attainment.

Genetic factors and socioeconomic status (SES) inequalities play a large role in educational attainment, and both have been associated with variations in brain structure and cognition. However, genetics and SES are correlated, and no prior study has assessed their neural associations independently. Here we used a polygenic score for educational attainment (EduYears-PGS), as well as SES, in a longitudinal study of 551 adolescents to tease apart genetic and environmental associations with brain development and cognition. Subjects received a structural MRI scan at ages 14 and 19. At both time points, they performed three working memory (WM) tasks. SES and EduYears-PGS were correlated (r = 0.27) and had both common and independent associations with brain structure and cognition. Specifically, lower SES was related to less total cortical surface area and lower WM. EduYears-PGS was also related to total cortical surface area, but in addition had a regional association with surface area in the right parietal lobe, a region related to nonverbal cognitive functions, including mathematics, spatial cognition, and WM. SES, but not EduYears-PGS, was related to a change in total cortical surface area from age 14 to 19. This study demonstrates a regional association of EduYears-PGS and the independent prediction of SES with cognitive function and brain development. It suggests that the SES inequalities, in particular parental education, are related to global aspects of cortical development, and exert a persistent influence on brain development during adolescence.

Language ability and adult homelessness.

People experiencing homelessness are at increased risk of neurological disorder due to multiple factors such as substance abuse, infection, and higher rates of serious mental illness and traumatic brain injury. This could affect cognitive and language skills. Indeed, past research has suggested that certain language-related skills tend to be lower in people experiencing homelessness. However, that research has compared homeless samples with age-matched normative samples and not with samples of people from similar socio-economic backgrounds. Therefore, it is unclear whether homelessness is even a relevant factor, or if adults who are homeless tend to have appropriate linguistic skills relative to their social and educational background. To compare the language skills of a group of adults with histories of homelessness with an education-matched control group. It was hypothesized that participants with histories of homelessness would have worse language performance than their matched controls. A quasi-experimental design was employed involving 17 adults with histories of homelessness, mainly rough sleeping, in the city of Quito in Ecuador, and a sample of 16 adults who had never been homeless. All were assessed with measures of head injury, substance dependence, affective disorder and language skills. A paired-sample analysis was performed on homeless and control participants matched for educational background, used as an index of socio-economic background. The mean years of formal education was low in both the homeless sample (mean = 5.82 years) and the control sample (mean = 6.75 years). There were no differences between the groups for any demographic or clinical factors, nor for a measure of expected or 'premorbid' ability based on single-word reading, nor for current non-verbal cognitive functioning. In contrast, the homeless group scored significantly worse than the control group on measures of auditory comprehension and oral expression. Adults with histories of homelessness may have worse language skills than would be expected based on their educational backgrounds and non-verbal cognitive abilities. It is possible that some of this lower language ability is pathological, in the form of either a developmental language disorder or an acquired impairment. As such, some adults who are homeless may benefit from therapy directed at clinical language disorders.

A comprehensive assessment process for children with autism spectrum disorders

PurposeThe assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in childhood has two essential aspects: the identification of the risk (under 30 months of age) and the definition of a diagnosis that takes into account its core areas as well as further non-specific aspects. The purpose of this paper is to present an approach that considers the combination of clinical evaluation with the use of tools that analyse the various levels of the child’s functioning as fundamental.Design/methodology/approachThe comprehensive assessment at the Institute of Ortofonologia in Rome provides the ADOS-2 and the Leiter-R for the evaluation of the symptomatology, the severity level, the non-verbal cognitive functioning and the fluid reasoning; the TCE and the UOI are used to identify, respectively, the child’s emotional skills and the ability to understand the intentions of others, as precursors of the theory of mind. Within this assessment, the Brief-P, the Short Sensory Profile and the RBS are also included for the evaluation of executive functions, sensory pattern and of restricted and repetitive behaviours, as observed by parents.FindingsHow to define a reliable development profile, which allows to plan a specific intervention calibrated on the potential of the child and on his development trajectory, is described. Two clinical cases are also presented.Originality/valueThe entire process is aimed both at a detailed assessment of the child’s functioning and at identifying a specific therapeutic project and predictive factors for achieving an optimal outcome.