Patterns Of Cognitive Performance Research Articles

Patterns of cognitive functioning in school-aged children with Noonan syndrome associated with variability in phenotypic expression

Objective: To evaluate the cognitive profiles of children with Noonan syndrome (NS) and to relate these profiles to measures of overall clinical severity. Study design: Thirty-five children with NS between the ages of 7 and 18 years were tested on their intellectual, psychosocial, and academic functioning. The diagnosis of NS was established on the presence of a typical face, the characteristic heart defect, thorax deformity, short stature, affected first-degree relative(s), and cryptorchidism in male subjects. Results: The total group of children with NS (n = 35) achieved significantly lower mean full-scale IQ, verbal IQ (VIQ), and performance IQ (PIQ) scores (between 85.9 and 89.3) than expected based on normative data. The individual full-scale IQ scores varied between 48 and 130. Because of this wide range of individual scores, the mean group values are not extremely informative. The mean full-scale IQ for the group with moderate NS (n = 19) is 90.8; for the children with severe NS (n = 16) the mean full-scale IQ is 80.6. The patterns of discrepancies between VIQ and PIQ are: (1) an extreme discrepancy between VIQ and PIQ is most likely to emerge in children with severe NS with (low) average intellectual abilities; (2) children with moderate NS are more likely to attain similarities in VIQ and PIQ scores; and (3) children with moderate NS demonstrate a particular pattern of discrepancy between VIQ and PIQ (ie, VIQ > PIQ). Conclusion: For children with NS, the findings on physical examination are indicative of the pattern of cognitive abilities. NS is not associated with substantial deficits in the level of intellectual functioning or with a single/unitary cognitive pattern. Severe NS expression, however, predicts in part a specific pattern of deficits and capacities in cognitive functioning. (J Pediatr 1999;135:707-13)

Cognitive consequences of coexisting temporal lobe developmental malformations and hippocampal sclerosis.

To characterize patterns of cognitive functioning in a well-defined group of patients with MRI-identified coexisting left temporal lobe developmental malformations (TLDM) and mesial temporal sclerosis (MTS), and to examine neuropsychological outcome in this dual-pathology group following epilepsy surgery. Cognitive functioning in patients with left TLDM and MTS (n = 15) was compared with patients with isolated left MTS (n = 40). TLDM and MTS were identified by high-quality MRI protocol. Patients were administered a battery of neuropsychology tests as part of their presurgical workup for possible epilepsy surgery. Unilateral temporal lobe resection was performed on 10 of the dual-pathology patients and 34 of the isolated MTS patients. Postoperative cognitive performance was also assessed. Both groups displayed impairments in verbal and visual memory, language, and academic achievement. Performance on measures of psychometric intelligence, executive function, and attention were not impaired and were similar between groups. Presence of dual pathology was associated with a significantly less efficient verbal encoding strategy on the word list learning task. Postoperatively, declines were noted for both groups across tasks of verbal memory and language. Groups were not different significantly in terms of neuropsychological outcome after surgery. Patients with coexisting TLDM and MTS have impaired cognitive functioning similar to MTS patients-in particular, with regard to episodic memory and language deficits. Temporal lobe resection produces similar cognitive changes in both groups.

REM sleep behavior disorder and dementia: cognitive differences when compared with AD.

To determine whether the dementia associated with REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) differs from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and, if so, whether differences in cognitive performance between RBD/dementia and AD resemble reported differences between dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and AD. This retrospective study compares neurocognitive performance between 31 patients with degenerative dementia and polysomnography-confirmed RBD and 31 patients without brainstem Lewy body pathology who met Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) clinical and neuropathologic criteria for AD. The patient groups did not differ in dementia severity (based on Global Deterioration Scale score) or duration. RBD preceded or coincided with the onset of cognitive decline in 94% of the patients. All but one patient with RBD/dementia had one or more of the following clinical features of DLB: visual hallucinations, extrapyramidal signs, or fluctuating cognition/alertness. The data revealed significantly worse performance on attention, perceptual organization, visual memory, and letter fluency for the RBD/dementia group, whereas the AD group showed significantly worse performance on confrontation naming and verbal memory. Patients with RBD and degenerative dementia demonstrate a significantly different pattern of cognitive performance from patients with AD. Most of the patients in the RBD/dementia sample also meet criteria for possible or probable DLB, and the pattern of cognitive differences from AD is similar to reported comparisons between DLB and AD. The cognitive and clinical data provide evidence to suggest that the dementia associated with RBD may represent DLB.

Effect of heterogeneity in patterns of cognitive function and dementia severity on cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease

Effect of heterogeneity in patterns of cognitive function and dementia severity on cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease

Cognitive functioning of ADHD and non-ADHD boys on the WISC-III and WRAML: An analysis within a memory model

This study examined differences in patterns of cognitive functioning, as assessed by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Revision (WISC-III) and Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning (WRAML), in 20 boys with ADHD and 20 boys referred for other psychological problems. The two groups were comparable in age (6 to 13 years) and WISC-III Full-Scale IQ. The ADHD group showed significantly lower scores on the WISC-III Freedom from Distractibility Index and the WRAML General Memory Index, Learning Index, and Visual Memory Index. Patterns of index scores and subtest scores, interpreted with relation to Atkinson and Shiffrin's Store Model of Memory, indicated that ADHD children show special problems on tasks requiring attention and processing through initial stages of memory. However, once material gets beyond initial stages to the long-term store, ADHD children tend to retain and apply the information as well as other children.

Mechanism of interhemispheric transfer and patterns of cognitive function in acallosal subjects of normal intelligence

Mechanism of interhemispheric transfer and patterns of cognitive function in acallosal subjects of normal intelligence

Selective processing of stress-related words in colour naming

A development of the Stroop task was used to investigate whether differences among individuals in their levels of stress are associated with differences in cognitive processing. Stress levels of a group of 40 industrial managers were assessed by means of the Stress Arousal Checklist. These individuals also performed a modified Stroop task in which they named the ink-colour of written letter-strings. The stimuli in one of the conditions consisted of stress-related, negative words such as ‘overload’. It was found that high-stress individuals, unlike low-stress ones, were significantly impaired in their naming latencies for negative words relative to neutral words. This finding suggests that level of stress should be included among the factors which may be held responsible for differences among individuals in their patterns of cognitive performance.

Calculation abilities in young children with different patterns of cognitive functioning.

This study examined the arithmetic calculation abilities of kindergarten and first-grade children with different patterns of cognitive functioning: children with low language but adequate spatial abilities (Low Language; n = 33, male = 42%); children with low spatial but adequate language abilities (Low Spatial; n = 21, male = 42%); children with general delays (Delayed; n = 21, male = 48%); and children with no language or spatial impairments (Nonimpaired; n = 33, male = 48%). Each child was given a series of addition and subtraction calculations presented as nonverbal problems, story problems, and number-fact problems. Story problems and number-fact problems require mastery of conventional verbal symbols, whereas nonverbal problems do not. The findings show that nonverbal, story, and number-fact problem formats are differentially sensitive to variation in cognitive ability. The Low Language group performed significantly worse than the Nonimpaired group on story problems but not on nonverbal problems or number-fact problems. The Delayed group performed significantly worse than the Nonimpaired group on nonverbal problems as well as on story problems but not on number-fact problems. The Low Spatial group did not differ significantly from the Nonimpaired group on any of the three problem types, although the overall performance of these children was weaker. When we adjusted for finger use on number-fact problems, the Nonimpaired group outperformed both the Low Language and the Delayed groups but not the Low Spatial group. Thus, the finding that the Low Language and Delayed groups perform as well as the Nonimpaired group on number-fact problems is attributable to their greater finger use.

Selective pattern of cognitive functioning in autism: A function of information processing load

Selective pattern of cognitive functioning in autism: A function of information processing load

Brief report: A comparison of patterns of cognitive functioning of autistic and nonautistic retarded children on the stanford-binet-fourth edition

The question addressed in the current study is whether autistic children and retarded children, closely matched on age and overall Stanford-Binet-fourth edition (SB-IV) composite score (IQ), show any differences in SB-IV area and subtest scores

Toward an understanding of cognitive functioning in geriatric depression.

This paper addresses the questions of whether depression compromises cognition in the elderly and whether discernable patterns of cognitive performances could be differentiated between patients with severe depression and those with organic dementia. Published data on geriatric depression and cognitive functioning are divided in demonstrating a depression effect. Further examination and external validation by new data show that the depression effect on discrete cognitive tasks is (1) small, and (2) sensitive to the confounding of sampling and task variables. Future research must take these factors into account. Patterns of cognitive functioning in depression and dementia are different and can be differentiated using a variety of measures. This review finds the term pseudodementia inappropriate and misleading and recommends that it be abandoned.

Cognitive Patterns in School-Age Children with End-Stage Liver Disease

Although children with end-stage liver disease (ESLD) have been found to have cognitive delays, the relationship between patterns of cognitive function and diagnostic category, age of onset, duration and severity of disease has not been assessed before transplantation. Verbal and performance IQ (VIQ, PIQ) scores and scores on Bannatyne's cognitive factors for 43 children with ESLD were compared with those of 15 control children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and with existing normative data. Children with biliary atresia had deficits in PIQ, spatial and sequential scores. Children with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency did not differ significantly from CF controls but did show deficits compared with normative data. Children with onset of disease in the first year of life had deficits on all cognitive measures compared with both control groups. In contrast, children with later onset differed from the normative population only on VIQ and the acquired knowledge factor. In multiple regression analyses, duration of disease and indexes of liver dysfunction combine to predict cognitive scores. These preliminary findings suggest that children with early onset of liver disease are at high risk for cognitive impairment.

Variations in Lateralized Processing among Right-Handers: Effects on Patterns of Cognitive Performance

Two experiments investigated whether individual differences among right-handers in patterns of lateralized processing were related to level of performance on a variety of cognitive tasks presented under non-tachistoscopic conditions. Subjects were divided into two groups of individuals, those who characteristically have greater than average right-hemisphere involvement in functioning and those who characteristically have greater than average left-hemisphere involvement.In the first experiment we examined whether characteristic individual differences in hemispheric involvement could predict performance on a facial memory task. The group with relatively greater right-hemisphere involvement had better recognition memory than the group with relatively greater left-hemisphere involvement. In the second experiment, we examined whether individual differences in hemispheric involvement could predict performance on a larger set of cognitive tasks. The groups were administered two tasks selected to evaluate lefthemisphere function and two selected to evaluate right-hemisphere function. The results indicated that the groups differed in their profile of cognitive performance. Individuals with greater than average right-hemisphere involvement in processing tended to perform better on tasks indexing right-hemisphere function than on tasks indexing left-hemisphere function, whereas the opposite was true of individuals with greater than average left-hemisphere involvement. Collectively, the results of these two experiments indicate that individual differences in lateralized performance have important implications for individual differences in patterns of cognitive ability.

Psychosocial functioning of learning-disabled children: Relations between WISC Verbal IQ^Performance IQ discrepancies and personality subtypes.

A total of 132 children with learning disabilities (LD) between the ages of 6 and 12 years were divided equally into 3 groups on the basis of the difference between WISC VIQ-PIQ scores (viz., VIQ greater than PIQ, VIQ = PIQ, and VIQ less than PIQ). The mean Personality Inventory for Children (PIC) profiles for the VIQ = PIQ and VIQ less than PIQ groups were normal; however, the VIQ greater than PIQ group showed pathological elevations on some PIC scales. Group average linkage cluster analysis using 10 PIC scales revealed 6 psychosocial subtypes. Within these subtypes, children with VIQ greater than PIQ were found at lower than expected frequencies in normal and mildly disturbed subtypes, but at higher than expected frequencies in seriously disturbed subtypes. These results support the notion that patterns of cognitive performance are related to patterns of psychosocial functioning in children with LD.

Cognitive profiles of children with early onset of unilateral lesions

The level and pattern of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children‐Revised (WISC‐R) performance for 18 left‐lesioned (LL) and 13 right‐lesioned (RL) children with clearly defined unilateral involvement and no ongoing seizure disorders were compared to normal controls matched by age, sex, race, and social class. Verbal IQ (VIQ), Performance IQ (PIQ), and Full Scale IQ (FIQ) were well within normal limits for all groups, although RL children scored significantly lower than right controls. No significant differences between VIQ, PIQ, and FIQ were found within the LL or RL or control groups; thus VIQ and PIQ discrepancy was not found to relate to lesion laterally. When WISC‐R subtests were recategorized according to Kaufman's factors, the Freedom from Distractibility factor was impaired in both LL and RL children, whereas RL children were also deficient on the Perceptual Organization factor. Level and pattern of cognitive performance are discussed in relation to age of lesion onset and site of lesion within a hemisphere.

Social Class-Sex Contrasts in Patterns of Cognitive Style: A Cross-Cultural Replication

In a cross-cultural replication of an Australian study, multiple discriminant function analysis was used on responses of a sample of 79 Californian adolescents (classified on an SES/Life Style index) to determine whether their pattern of cognitive functioning differed on a battery of cognitive style tests along a social-class/sex dimension. On Function I, middle-class (M) and working-class (W) boys displayed broad estimates of category width, while middle-class girls and working-class girls scored high on originality and conceptual differentiation, but low on category width. On Function II, middle-class girls and boys scored higher on conceptual preference for descriptive-analytic labels, and on category width working-class girls and boys showed a preference for inferential labels. The results indicated close similarity between the Australian and United States sample in terms of the dimensions analysed, although both groups of U.S. girls displayed greater preference for analytic and creative modes, respectively. Results were interpreted within socialization theory, the discrepant results being attributed to different socialization clusters operating within the culture.

Neuropsychological deficits associated with chronic alcohol abuse

This paper reviews the neuropsychological literature on the effects of chronic alcohol abuse. Research reveals a relatively consistent pattern of intellectual and adaptive ability deficits associated with alcoholism. Alcoholics frequently show deficits in abstract thinking and problem solving involving integration of novel material, particularly of a visual-spatial nature; at the same time, their verbal skills and general psychometric intelligence often appear intact. This pattern of cognitive functioning is moderated to some degree by demographic, drinking-related, and cognitive style variables, and is closely associated with morphological and functional impairment of the brain. While a precise neurological mechanism for these effects has not been clearly established, several hypotheses have been advanced to account for the behavioral deficits evidenced by alcoholics. Based on a knowledge of the neuropsychological functioning of alcoholics, several treatment-related implications are discussed.

Sex-Typing of Children's Play Preferences and Patterns of Cognitive Performance

Sex-Typing of Children's Play Preferences and Patterns of Cognitive Performance

Left-handedness in twins: Incidence and patterns of performance in an adolescent sample

Data on handedness and cognitive performance in an adolescent sample of same-sex twins were collected, and questions about incidence of left-handedness in twins and the relation between handedness and cognitive performance were considered. Same-sex twins have been found to have a higher incidence of left-handedness than that usually reported in the general population. There is a high incidence of handedness discordance (one twin right-handed and his cotwin left-handed) in both monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs. In this sample, males and Blacks had particularly high rates of left-handedness. Among the monozygotic and dizygotic discordant pairs, quite different patterns of cognitive performance were found. On the Raven Progressive Matrices, the Columbia Test of Mental Maturity, and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, the left-handers did better than their right-handed cotwins in the monozygotic pairs and the right-handers did better than their left-handed cotwins in the dizygotic pairs. Within subjects, no signficant differences were found for superiority of spatial or verbal abilities for either right-handers or left-handers. No general statements can be made about the performance of left-handed twins, since performance differs according to zygosity and handedness of cotwin configurations.

The prediction of ego functioning in college.

This interdisciplinary study demonstrates a method for identifying signs of faulty ego functioning in adolescence from the routine written reports of secondary school teachers. These reports were coded systematically into categories which meaningfully described students and which had greater power to predict their future behavior and emotional stability in college than the usual demographic, ability, and performance parameters. The categories reflect well-known characterological types, styles of interpersonal relationships, and patterns of cognitive functioning. The results suggest that character is sufficiently well defined by mid-adolescence so that one can distinguish between normal adolescent turmoil and a pathological process. Adolescents whose egos fail in college have already manifested in high school signs of difficulty, specifically an intensification of aggression, increased narcissism, and deviant cognitive functioning.