Poorer Verbal Abilities Research Articles

Gender differences in early stages of language development. Some evidence and possible explanations.

It is a common feeling that girls speak earlier than boys; however, whether or not there are gender differences in early language acquisition remains controversial. The present paper aims to review the research on gender effects in early language acquisition and development, to determine whether, and from which age, an advantage for girls does eventually emerge. The focus is on the production of actions and communicative gestures, and early lexical comprehension and production, by girls and boys. The data from various studies that were conducted with direct and indirect tools suggest that some gender differences in actions, gesture, and lexical development depend on the interactions of different factors. Studies differ in terms of age ranges, sample sizes, and tools used, and the girl advantage is often slight and/or not evident at all ages considered. Statistical significance for gender differences appears to depend on the greater individual variability among boys, with respect to girls, which results in a greater number of boys classified as children with poor verbal ability. Biological (e.g., different maturational rates), neuropsychological (e.g., different cognitive strategies in solving tasks), and cultural (e.g., differences in the way parents relate socially to boys and girls) factors appear to interact, to create feedback loops of mutual reinforcement.

The Direct and Indirect Effects of Domestic Violence on the Maternal-Child Relationship & Intellectual Process of Pre-School Age Children’s

The study investigated the unswerving besides the incidental effect of domestic violence on a child’s Logical Operations. This study took 100 participants also children, whose age is between 3 or 5-year-old in which (44 Boys and 56 Girls) conscripted from the overall society. Domestic violence is used as a dependent variable and negatively related to the home environment and Trauma & Mental Depression. Children who witness domestic violence have poorer verbal ability whereas controlling the SES and child abuse have significantly affected visual-spatial abilities. The two scores WPPSI-R and PPVT-R score are used for MANCOVA results for primary data for witness and non-witness of domestic violence. In the end, internal vehemence circuitously precious the mutual type of rational skills over the impression on parental downheartedness besides the intellectual superiority of the household atmosphere.

Modifiable child and caregiver factors that influence community participation among children with Down syndrome

Purpose To investigate modifiable child and caregiver factors influencing community participation among children with Down syndrome. Methods Cross-sectional data from a study investigating quality of life of children with intellectual disability were analysed. Participants were caregivers of 89 children with Down syndrome (54 females; 83 school attenders) (mean age 11 y 1 mo; SD 4 y 1 mo). Components of participation (attendance, involvement) were measured using the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth, community module. Caregiver factors were time, mood, transport, and disability funding. Child factors were sleep, behaviour, communication, and health. Multivariate linear regression analyses examined if (i) caregiver factors were associated with attendance and (ii) child factors were associated with involvement. Results Increased caregiver time availability was associated with higher frequency of attendance. Higher frequency of attendance was associated with greater child involvement, and having a sleep breathing disorder and less verbal communication ability was associated with less child involvement. These factors combined explained 21% of the variance. Conclusions Children with Down syndrome who participated in the community more frequently enjoyed greater involvement. Supporting participation of children with poorer verbal communication and/or sleep breathing disorders could further the participation of children with Down syndrome. Implications for rehabilitation Children with Down syndrome who more frequently attended opportunities for participation were more likely to be involved in those experiences. Healthcare providers and educators could foster involvement in participation opportunities of children with poorer verbal ability by supporting the development of prerequisite communication strategies. Rehabilitation programs and policies pertaining to accessibility of community activities need to align with modifiable determinants of participation in children, including availability of caregivers’ time.

Neuropsychological and Criminological Features of Female Homicide Offenders.

Few studies have examined life history and cognitive characteristics unique to female homicide offenders. Understanding these characteristics could aid in risk assessment for extreme violence in this group of offenders. The current study utilized t-tests or chi-square tests to compare 27 female and 81 male homicide offenders on psychiatric, neurologic, criminal, and cognitive characteristics. Additionally, we explored the role of abuse history in female offenders through Kruskal-Wallis or Fisher's exact tests. Results indicate that in comparison with male counterparts, females are more likely to have history of mood disorder, borderline personality disorder, and abuse. Cognitively, female homicide offenders exhibit circumscribed cognitive impairment in verbal abilities and perform similarly to male homicide offenders across most cognitive tasks. Within the female offender group, history of sexual abuse is associated with higher rates of impulsive homicide and poorer verbal abilities. These findings provide preliminary evidence for distinct factors associated with homicide in women.

Infants Born Large for Gestational Age and Developmental Attainment in Early Childhood.

Objectives To investigate if an association exists between being born large for gestational age (LGA) and verbal ability or externalizing behaviour problems at ages 4-5 years. Method A secondary analysis was conducted using the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth, including singleton births in 2004-2005 followed till 4-5 years (n = 1685). LGA was defined as a birth weight > 90th percentile. Outcomes included poor verbal ability (scoring < 15th percentile on the Revised Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test) and externalizing behaviour problems (scoring > 90th percentile on externalizing behaviour scales). Multivariable logistic regression with longitudinal standardized funnel weights and bootstrapping estimation were used. Results Infants born LGA were not found to be at increased risk for poor verbal ability (aOR: 1.16 [0.49,2.72] and aOR: 0.83 [0.37,1.87] for girls and boys, resp.) or externalizing behaviour problems (aOR: 1.24 [0.52,2.93] and aOR: 1.24 [0.66,2.36] for girls and boys, resp.). Social factors were found to impact developmental attainment. Maternal smoking led to an increased risk for externalizing behaviour problems (aOR: 3.33 [1.60,6.94] and aOR: 2.12 [1.09,4.13] for girls and boys, resp.). Conclusion There is no evidence to suggest that infants born LGA are at increased risk for poor verbal ability or externalizing behaviour problems.

The treatment of epilepsy in pregnancy: The neurodevelopmental risks associated with exposure to antiepileptic drugs.

A number of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) have been confirmed as teratogens due to their association with an increased malformation rate. The majority of research to date does not find an association between prenatal exposure to monotherapy carbamazepine, lamotrigine or phenytoin and neurodevelopmental outcome in comparison to control children and noted higher abilities in comparison to children exposed to valproate; but further work is needed before conclusions can be drawn. Data for levetiracetam was limited to one study, as was the evidence for topiramate. Sodium valproate exposure appeared to carry a dose dependent risk to the developing brain, with evidence of reduced levels of IQ, poorer verbal abilities and increased rate of autistic spectrum disorder both in comparison to control children and children exposed to other AEDs. The severity of the neurodevelopmental deficits associated with prenatal exposure to valproate highlight the critical need to consider neurodevelopmental outcomes as a central aspect of teratological research.

Differential relationship between neurological and cognitive dysfunction in first episode psychosis patients and in healthy individuals

The minor neurological and cognitive deficits consistently reported in psychoses may reflect the same underlying brain dysfunction. Still, even in healthy individuals minor neurological abnormalities are associated with worse cognitive function. Therefore, establishing which neurological and cognitive deficits are specific to psychosis is essential to inform the pathophysiology of this disorder. We evaluated a large epidemiological sample of patients with first episode psychosis (n=242) and a population-based sample of healthy individuals (n=155), as part of the AESOP study. We examined neurological soft signs using the Neurological Evaluation Scale (Buchanan and Heinrichs, 1989), and generalized and specific cognitive deficits (memory; verbal abilities; attention, concentration and mental speed; executive functions and working memory; language; visual constructual/perceptual abilities). In patients, more neurological signs across all subscales were associated with worse general cognitive function, while in controls this was only present for sensory integration and sequencing signs. Furthermore, in patients, but not in healthy individuals, more sensory integrative signs were associated with deficits in specific cognitive domains, such as memory, verbal abilities, language, visual/perceptual, executive function (p ranging <0.001–0.002); sequencing signs with language, executive function, and attention (p<0.001–0.004); and motor signs with poorer verbal abilities (p=0.001). These findings indicate the presence of specific associations between neurological and cognitive deficits in psychosis that are distinct from those of healthy individuals.

Epilepsy in autism: features and correlates

Epilepsy occurs in a significant minority of individuals with autism, but few long-term follow-up studies have been reported, so the prevalence, features (type of seizures, age at onset and severity, etc.) and correlates (IQ history of regression, family history) have only partially been identified. To undertake a long-term follow-up study of individuals with autism in order to better characterise the features and correlates of epilepsy in individuals with autism. One hundred and fifty individuals diagnosed with autism in childhood were followed up when they were 21+ years of age. All individuals were screened for a history of possible seizures by parental/informant questionnaire. An epilepsy interview was undertaken and medical notes reviewed for individuals with a history of possible seizures. The features and correlates of epilepsy were examined using survival and regression analysis. Epilepsy developed in 22% of participants. In the majority, seizures began after 10 years of age. Generalised tonic-clonic seizures predominated (88%). In over a half (19/33), seizures occurred weekly or less frequently and in the majority of individuals (28/31) they were controlled with the prescription of one to two anticonvulsants. Epilepsy was associated with gender (female), intellectual disability and poorer verbal abilities. Although the presence of epilepsy in the probands was not associated with an increased risk of epilepsy in their relatives, it was associated with the presence of the broader autism phenotype in relatives. This indicates that the familial liability to autism was associated with the risk for epilepsy in the proband. Epilepsy is an important medical complication that develops in individuals with autism. Seizures may first begin in adolescence or adulthood. Putative risk factors for epilepsy in autism were identified and these will require further investigation in future studies.

Alcohol intake and cognitive abilities in old age: the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 study.

Moderate alcohol consumption has been associated with better cognitive performance in late adulthood, possibly by improving vascular health. Few studies have examined the potentially confounding roles of prior cognitive ability and social class in this relationship. Participants were 922 healthy adults about 70 years old in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 study, for whom there are IQ data from age 11. Alcohol consumption was obtained by self-report questionnaire. Cognitive outcome measures included general cognitive ability, speed of information processing, memory, and verbal ability. Moderate to substantial drinking (>2 units/day) was associated with better performance on cognitive tests than low-level drinking (≤2 units/day) or nondrinking in men and women. After adjusting for childhood IQ and adult social class, most of these associations were removed or substantially attenuated. After full adjustment, a small, positive association remained between overall alcohol intake and memory (women and men) and verbal ability (women only). Women's overall alcohol intake was derived almost exclusively from wine. In men, effects differed according to beverage type: wine and sherry-port consumption was associated with better verbal ability, but beer was associated with a poorer verbal ability and spirits intake was associated with better memory. Prior intelligence and socioeconomic status influence both amount and type of alcohol intake and may partly explain the link between alcohol intake and improved cognitive performance at age 70. Alcohol consumption was found to make a small, independent contribution to memory performance and verbal ability, but these findings' clinical significance is uncertain.

Genetic origins of the association between verbal ability and alcohol dependence symptoms in young adulthood

Cognitive deficits in alcohol dependence (AD) have been observed, poorer verbal ability being among the most consistent findings. Genetic factors influence both cognitive ability and AD, but whether these influences overlap is not known. A subset of 602 monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins from FinnTwin16, a population-based study of Finnish twins, was used to study the associations of verbal ability with DSM-III-R diagnosis and symptoms of AD, the maximum number of drinks consumed in a 24-h period, and the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI) scores. These twins, most of them selected for within-pair discordance or concordance for their RAPI scores at age 18.5 years, were studied with neuropsychological tests and interviewed with the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism (SSAGA) in young adulthood (mean age 26.2 years, range 23-30 years). All alcohol problem measures were associated with lower scores on the Vocabulary subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - Revised (WAIS-R), a measure of verbal ability. In bivariate genetic models, Vocabulary and the alcohol problem measures had moderate heritabilities (0.54-0.72), and their covariation could be explained by correlated genetic influences (genetic correlations -0.20 to -0.31). Poorer verbal ability and AD have partly overlapping biological etiology. The genetic and environmental influences on the development of cognitive abilities, alcohol problems and risk factors for AD should be studied further with prospective longitudinal designs.

Identifying and profiling scholastic cheaters: Their personality, cognitive ability, and motivation.

Despite much research, skepticism remains over the possibility of profiling scholastic cheaters. However, several relevant predictor variables and newer diagnostic tools have been overlooked. We remedy this deficit with a series of three studies. Study 1 was a large-scale survey of a broad range of personality predictors of self-reported cheating. Significant predictors included the Dark Triad (Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychopathy) as well as low agreeableness and low conscientiousness. Only psychopathy remained significant in a multiple regression. Study 2 replicated this pattern using a naturalistic, behavioral indicator of cheating, namely, plagiarism as indexed by the Internet service Turn-It-In. Poor verbal ability was also an independent predictor. Study 3 examined possible motivational mediators of the association between psychopathy and cheating. Unrestrained achievement and moral inhibition were successful mediators whereas fear of punishment was not. Practical implications for researchers and educators are discussed.

Self-regulated reading in adulthood.

Young and older adults read a series of passages of 3 different genres for an immediate assessment of text memory (measured by recall and true/false questions). Word-by-word reading times were measured and decomposed into components reflecting resource allocation to particular linguistic processes using regression. Allocation to word and textbase processes showed some consistency across the 3 text types and was predictive of memory performance. Older adults allocated more time to word and textbase processes than the young adults did but showed enhanced contextual facilitation. Structural equation modeling showed that greater resource allocation to word processes was required among readers with relatively low working memory spans and poorer verbal ability and that greater resource allocation to textbase processes was engendered by higher verbal ability. Results are discussed in terms of a model of self-regulated language processing suggesting that older readers may compensate for processing deficiencies through greater reliance on discourse context and on increases in resource allocation that are enabled through growth in crystallized ability.

Memory performance in dyslexic male juvenile delinquents convicted of severe offences does not differ from that in dyslexic male junior college students

Background: There are different research approaches regarding the causes and possible overrepresentation of dyslexia in criminals. One approach focuses on sociological explanations such as under-stimulation at home, while another focuses on the importance of cognitive neurobiological dysfunctions. In several studies, poor memory for digits and poor verbal learning ability have been found in non-criminal dyslexics.Aim: To compare memory performance in two groups of dyslexics, namely, juvenile delinquents and junior college students, in order to discuss their dyslexic problems in the light of sociocultural and cognitive neurobiological approaches.Participants: Two groups of male adolescent dyslexics: 11 juvenile delinquents (mean age 18.55 years, SD = 2.07), all of them convicted for severe offences, and 11 junior college students (mean age 17.09 years, SD = 0.83).Results: Matched-samples t-tests indicate that there is no difference in memory performance between the two different groups of dyslexics, which supports the accuracy of the diagnoses of dyslexia in the group of juvenile delinquents.Conclusions: The present results show that the memory performance of dyslexic juvenile delinquents does not differ from that of dyslexic junior college students. A sociocultural approach, therefore, cannot plausibly explain the high prevalence of reading and writing difficulties among juvenile delinquents.

Interference between verbal concept formation and spatial mental rotation in female subjects.

In this study the relation between spatial cognition and verbal intelligence abilities was examined in case of 52 women. Interference between mental rotation performance and verbal intelligence scores was found. Women with good verbal abilities have lower scores in mental rotation tasks than subjects with poorer verbal abilities. This finding is in accordance with some basic models of a dual-coding system. The spatial functions represented in mental rotation interfered with verbal-based concept formation and lexical knowledge in college women.

INTERFERENCE BETWEEN VERBAL CONCEPT FORMATION AND SPATIAL MENTAL ROTATION IN FEMALE SUBJECTS

In this study the relation between spatial cognition and verbal intelligence abilities was examined in case of 52 women. Interference between mental rotation performance and verbal intelligence scores was found. Women with good verbal abilities have lower scores in mental rotation tasks than subjects with poorer verbal abilities. This finding is in accordance with some basic models of a dual-coding system. The spatial functions represented in mental rotation interfered with verbal-based concept formation and lexical knowledge in college women.

The direct and indirect effects of domestic violence on young children's intellectual functioning

This study examined the direct and indirect effects of domestic violence on preschoolers' intellectual functioning. The sample consisted of 100 women and their 3–5-year-old children (44 boys and 56 girls) recruited from the general community. Forty-three percent of mothers had experienced domestic violence within the last year, defined by at least one physically aggressive act by an intimate partner. Children who had witnessed domestic violence had significantly poorer verbal abilities than nonwitnesses after controlling for SES and child abuse, but there were no group differences on visual–spatial abilities. Domestic violence also indirectly affected both types of intellectual abilities through its impact on maternal depression and the intellectual quality of the home environment. Strengths and limitations of the study are discussed, as well as the implications for interventions for young child witnesses.

Discrepancy poor verbal skills in poor readers: A failure of learning or ability?

Poor verbal skills in poor readers have long been reported in the literature. There have been many attempts to understand the interaction between poor verbal ability and poor verbal achievement. The methodological problems are considerable, including the measurement of verbal ability, which has been confounded by previous learning. A new reasoning test, the VESPAR, has been designed to measure novel problem solving and thus to be less reliant on acquired verbal skills. One hundred and seventy 14-year-olds completed the VESPAR, the Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT) and a single-word reading test. Overall, verbal scores were weaker than spatial scores. A subgroup of 38 pupils with particularly marked discrepancies between verbal and non-verbal CAT was identified. The especially discrepant pupils were matched with other non-discrepant pupils from the year group for either verbal or non-verbal CAT. The discrepant group's reading was at the same level as the matched verbal CAT group. However, the primary verbal ability of the discrepancy group, as measured on the VESPAR, was greater than the matched verbal CAT group. This raises the possibility that CAT- but not VESPAR-discrepant pupils may be at particular risk of under-achievement in the verbal domain.

Talents and Disorders - Relationships Among Handedness, Sex, and College Major

One-hundred and nine consistent left- and right-handers participated in an experiment investigating the role of Handedness, Sex, and College Major in predicting spatial talents, verbal problems, immune disorders, allergies, and myopia. Left-handers had poor verbal ability. Males in spatial majors (requiring extensive math) had high spatial ability and poor verbal ability. Left-handed males in spatial majors bad high spatial ability, poor verbal ability, an elevated incidence of asthma, and a marginally higher incidence of myopia. No trade-off between spatial and verbal ability was found. Results provide qualified support for Geschwind and Galaburdas (1987) hypothesis of the ′Pathology of Superiority."

A prospective study of young men at high risk for alcoholism. Social and psychological characteristics.

In a prospective longitudinal study of alcoholism, we applied the high-risk method using a Danish birth cohort (9125 consecutive deliveries, 1959 to 1961). From the cohort, 134 sons of alcoholic fathers (high-risk group) and 70 matched controls without parental alcoholism were selected for study. Extensive data were collected in a multidisciplinary etiologic approach. We report the social and psychological characteristics from a "premorbid" assessment when the subjects were 19 to 20 years old. The high-risk group reported more disrupted familial conditions during childhood than the control group. Both groups had a drinking pattern similar to that of the general Danish population at the same age. No alcoholic subjects were found. The high-risk group was characterized by poor verbal ability and impulsive behavior. We plan a follow-up examination of the sample.

Language localization and variability

Language localization data from 11 neurosurgical patients undergoing cortical resection for medically intractable focal epilepsy were obtained by mapping with bipolar electrical stimulation at current levels below sensory and after-discharge thresholds, during an object-naming task. The topographical extent of language cortex in an individual subject can be wider than that proposed in the classic maps. Within this zone, language is discretely localized, with different sites variably committed to language as measured by the naming function. The naming data from the left cortex of eight patients, all left-brain-dominant, were pooled to determine the variability within the primary language zone. Only a narrow band of posterior, inferior frontal lobe, immediately anterior to motor strip, showed involvement in all of the patients in whom it was sampled. This is a motor speech area; it constitutes only a small portion of the frontal language area. Other infero-frontal, parietal, and postero-temporal sites showed considerable variability, with naming involvement in only 50–80% of the patients sampled. There is a suggestion that some of these patterns of language localization may correlate with poorer verbal abilities. Data were also obtained on language localization in the left insula in a patient who was left-hemisphere-dominant for language. Mapping of the right hemisphere in a left-brain-dominant patient demonstrated no naming function. Mapping of the right hemisphere in one and the left hemisphere in another patient, both of whom were right-hemisphere-dominant for language, suggests more diffuse language representation with right hemisphere dominance.