scholarly journals Executive functions, visual-motor coordination, physical fitness and academic achievement: Longitudinal relations in typically developing children

2018 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 69-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Oberer ◽  
Venera Gashaj ◽  
Claudia M. Roebers
Keyword(s):  
Academic Achievement ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Visual Motor Coordination ◽  
Visual Motor

scholarly journals Characteristics of Executive Functions in Patients With Cognitive Impairments in the Presence of Depressive Disorders

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (31) ◽  
pp. 46-52
Author(s):  
S. Yaroslavtsev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Bipolar Affective Disorder ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Visual Motor Coordination ◽  
Visual Spatial ◽  
Visual Motor ◽  
Depressive Episodes

Introduction. The urgency of the problem of affective pathology and, above all, depression, due to a number of factors: the growing prevalence of depression, reaching 10.0 % in the population, the high risk of chronic such conditions, their maladaptive impact on social functioning, efficiency and quality of life, the burden of economic costs etc. According to epidemiological indicators in Ukraine over the past 10 years, the incidence of affective disorders has increased by 6.13 %, and the prevalence – by 13.16 %. Impaired thinking and executive functions, decreased concentration and difficulty making decisions are key diagnostic signs of depression. Cognitive impairment (CI) has a cumulative effect on the functionality of patients with depression and is associated with a longer duration of depressive episodes, which indicates the need for its diagnosis and treatment. At the present stage, there are no systematic ideas about the specifics of disorders of executive functions in the presence of different types of depressive disorders (DD), which determines the relevance of the study in this direction. The aim of the study. Describe the executive functions in patients with CI in the presence of DD. Materials and methods. The study included 362 patients with CI in the presence of DD, which were stratified into three groups of comparisons by the mechanism of DD: 123 patients with recurrent depressive disorders (RDD), 141 patients with bipolar affective disorder (BAD) and 98 people with prolonged depressive reaction (PDR). The predominant numbers (38.12 %) of patients with CI in the presence of DD were in adulthood (30-44 years). There were more young people (18-29 years) among patients with PDR (21.43 %, DC = 8.19) and among patients with BAD (31.21 %, DC = 9.82), and middle-aged people (45-59 years) (37.40 %, DC = 1.54) and the elderly (60-74 years) (17.07 %, DC = 4.78) – among patients with RDD. A set of research methods was used: clinical-psychopathological, psychodiagnostic and statistical. Results. Peculiarities of executive functions in patients with CI in the presence of DD were established: the moderate and severe disorders of visual-motor coordination (39.84 % and 19.51 %, respectively) and impaired visual-spatial functions (13.72 %), moderate and severe violations of executive functions (54.47 % and 13.01 %, respectively), moderate, severe and weak violations of the executive function of the lexical system (39.84 %, 32.52 % and 23.58 %, respectively) were present in patients with RDD; the moderate violations of verbal performance (58.54 %); moderate and severe violations of visual-motor coordination (41.13 % and 26.24 %, respectively), executive functions (65.96 % и 21.38 %, respectively), executive functions of the lexical system (47.52 % и 39,01 %, respectively) and verbal productivity (58.16 % and 21.28 % respectively) were found in BAD; absence and weak impairments of visual-motor coordination (45.92 % and 36.73 %, respectively), executive functions (23.47 % and 66.33 %, respectively), executive functions of the lexical system (31.63 % and 45.92 %, respectively) and verbal productivity (26.53 % and 58.16 %, respectively) were presented in patients with PDR. Conclusions. The study revealed the features of executive functions in patients with cognitive impairment in the presence of depressive disorders, which should be taken into account in the algorithm of their psychosocial rehabilitation.

scholarly journals Proximal and distal movement patterns during a graphomotor task in typically developing children and children with handwriting problems

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shoshana Steinhart ◽  
Patrice L. Weiss ◽  
Jason Friedman
Keyword(s):  
Upper Extremity ◽  
Research Group ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Movement Patterns ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Joint Movement ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Visual Motor Integration ◽  
Visual Motor

Abstract Background Therapists specializing in handwriting difficulties in children often address motor problems including both proximal and distal movements in the upper extremity. Kinematic measures can be used to investigate various aspects of handwriting. This study examined differences in movement patterns in proximal and distal joints of the upper extremity during graphomotor tasks between typically developing children with and without handwriting problems. Additionally, it explored relationships between movement patterns, speed, and legibility of writing. Methods Forty-one children, aged 7–11 years, were assessed with the Aleph Aleph Ktav Yad Hebrew Handwriting assessment and the Beery Test of Visual Motor Integration and, based on their scores, were divided into a research group (with handwriting difficulties) and a control group (without handwriting difficulties). Upper extremity joint movement patterns were analyzed with a motion capture system. Differences in the quality of shapes traced and copied on a graphics tablet positioned horizontally and vertically were compared. Between-group differences and relationships with speed and legibility were analyzed. Results In both groups, there was greater movement in the distal compared to the proximal joints, greater movement when performing the task in a horizontal compared to a vertical plane, and greater movement when tracing than copying. Joint movements in the arm executed scaled-down versions of the shapes being drawn. While the amount of joint displacement was similar between groups, children in the research group showed greater dissimilarity between the drawn shape and the shape produced by the proximal joints. Finally, the drawing measure on the tablet was a significant predictor of legibility, speed of writing, visual motor integration and motor coordination, whereas the dissimilarity measure of joint movement was a significant predictor of speed of writing and motor coordination. Conclusions This study provides support for the role of the distal upper extremity joints in the writing process and some guidance to assist clinicians in devising treatment strategies for movement-related handwriting problems. While we observed differences in proximal joint movements between the children with and without handwriting difficulties, the extent to which they are responsible for the differences in drawing quality remains to be determined. Further studies should use a similar methodology to examine additional tasks such as drawing shapes of varying sizes.

scholarly journals Attention, Impulsiveness, and Gender in Academic Achievement Among Typically Developing Children

2018 ◽  
Vol 126 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-24
Author(s):  
Masoumeh Alavi ◽  
Jyi H. Seng ◽  
Mohamed S. Mustaffa ◽  
Mohd T. Ninggal ◽  
Mansour Amini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Academic Achievement ◽  
Impulse Control ◽  
Clinical Samples ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Primary School Students ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
School Students ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Academic Scores ◽  
Significant Moderator

Although several studies have examined the relationships among attention, impulse control, gender, and academic achievement, most have focused on clinical samples and have considered only one or two academic subjects. This study investigated these relationships among typically developing children using general achievement measures (academic scores and grades). Our participants were 270 typically developing primary school students (142 boys and 128 girls) of different nationalities living in Malaysia, recruited with purposive sampling with a mean age of 9.75 years. We found that both attention and impulse control significantly predicted academic achievement. Girls had a higher level of attention and impulse control than boys, but gender was not a significant moderator between either attention or impulse control and academic achievement. We discuss the implications of these findings and the need for further research.

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