Overcoming the bottleneck in traditional assessments of verbal memory: Modeling human ratings and classifying clinical group membership

Author(s):  
Chelsea Chandler ◽  
Peter W. Foltz ◽  
Jian Cheng ◽  
Jared C. Bernstein ◽  
Elizabeth P. Rosenfeld ◽  
...  
2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 462 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Vallejo-Sánchez ◽  
Ana M. Pérez-García

<p>Positivity construct refers to the propensity to think positively about oneself, life and the future, being closely related to wellbeing and health. Moreover, coping strategies used to manage stress have an important role in the development of mental health problems, one of which is adjustment disorder (AD).</p><p>The aim of this study was: Firstly, to analyze the differences in positivity, coping, and some relevant socio-demographic variables between the clinical (formed by patients with AD; N=57) and the control (N=66) groups; and secondly, to analyze whether these variables could predict, using binary logistic regression, the participants’ membership to the clinical or the control group.</p>The clinical group showed less positivity and a greater use of disengagement strategies compared to the control group. Furthermore, the variables assessed were able to predict the clinical or control group membership with a 91% of success rate. The main risk factors to belong to the clinical group were the use of social support coping and disengagement strategies; whereas active employment status, the use of humor, positivity and younger age decreased this risk.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Balashova ◽  
E Zarudnaya

In the present article, authors analyze characteristics of verbal memory in late-life depressions and normal ageing. During last decades, the increase of frequency of affective disorders in depression spectrum in late age attracts attention of specialists. Memory is one of the most sensitive functions in late-life depressions. The maingoal of this research is to estimate verbal memory of senior patients with depression and normal persons. Two groups of participants, consisting of 197 patients with depressions of Scientific Center of Mental Health (Moscow) and 100 mentally healthy people participated in this research. Control and clinical groups were comparable by socio-demographical parameters. The results of two methods were interpreted: (1) memorization and delayed reproduction of five words; (2) naming of five sharp objects. In first method, the volume of first reproduction (FR), the number of material presentations required for memorization (N) and the volume of delayed reproduction (DR) were examined. In addition, the frequency of occurrence of various types of errors such as omissions, inert repetitions, impairments of order and of selectivity was estimated. In the second method were examined: presence of pauses, necessity of psychological assistance, such as verbal stimulation or clarification of the semantic field. Statistical analysis was made using SPSS Statistics and Microsoft office Excel 2007. The research results showed that patients with depression deal with offeredmethods worse than mentally healthy people do. In memorization of five words, volumes of FR and DR were lower and patients needed more repetitions to memorize. When analyzing age dynamic, negative changes in verbal memory were more evident in clinical group. When naming of five sharp objects, patients with depression made more pauses and needed more frequently clarification of semantic field or verbal stimulation. Keywords: verbal memory, normal ageing, late-life depressions, neuropsychology


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-250
Author(s):  
Ann E. Perreau ◽  
Richard S. Tyler ◽  
Patricia C. Mancini ◽  
Shelley Witt ◽  
Mohamed Salah Elgandy

Purpose Audiologists should be treating hyperacusis patients. However, it can be difficult to know where to begin because treatment protocols and evidence-based treatment studies are lacking. A good place to start in any tinnitus and hyperacusis clinic is to incorporate a group educational session. Method Here, we outline our approach to establishing a hyperacusis group educational session that includes specific aspects of getting to know each patient to best meet their needs, understanding the problems associated with hyperacusis, explaining the auditory system and the relationship of hyperacusis to hearing loss and tinnitus, describing the influence of hyperacusis on daily life, and introducing treatment options. Subjective responses from 11 adults with hyperacusis, who participated in a recent clinical group education session, were discussed to illustrate examples from actual patients. Conclusions Due to the devastating nature of hyperacusis, patients need to be reassured that they are not alone and that they can rely on audiologists to provide support and guidance. A group approach can facilitate the therapeutic process by connecting patients with others who are also affected by hyperacusis, and by educating patients and significant others on hyperacusis and its treatment options. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.8121197


2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 257-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes H. Scheidemann ◽  
Franz Petermann ◽  
Marc Schipper

Abstract. We investigated theory of mind (ToM) deficits in Alzheimer‘s disease (AD) and its possible connection to autobiographical memory (ABM). Patients and matched controls were evaluated and compared using a video-based ToM test, an autobiographical fluency task, and a neuropsychological test battery. We found that ToM deficits were positively associated with semantic ABM in the clinical group, whereas a positive relationship appeared between ToM and episodic ABM in controls. We hypothesize that this reflects the course of the disease as well as that semantic ABM is used for ToM processing, being still accessible in AD. Furthermore, we assume that it is also less efficient, which in turn leads to a specific deficit profile of social cognition.


2003 ◽  
Vol 62 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Bolognini ◽  
B. Plancherel ◽  
J. Laget ◽  
P. Stéphan ◽  
O. Halfon

The aim of this study, which was carried out in the French-speacking part of Switzerland, was to examine the relationship between suicide attempts and self-mutilation by adolescents and young adults. The population, aged 14-25 years (N = 308), included a clinical sample of dependent subjects (drug abuse and eating disorders) compared to a control sample. On the basis of the Mini Neuropsychiatric Interview ( Sheehan et al., 1998 ), DSM-IV criteria were used for the inclusion of the clinical population. The results concerning the occurrence of suicide attempts as well as on self-mutilation confirm most of the hypotheses postulated: suicidal attempts and self-mutilation were more common in the clinical group compared to the control group, and there was a correlation between suicide attempts and self-mutilation. However, there was only a partial overlap, attesting that suicide and self-harm might correspond to two different types of behaviour.


Author(s):  
Vanessa Puetz ◽  
Thomas Günther ◽  
Berrak Kahraman-Lanzerath ◽  
Beate Herpertz-Dahlmann ◽  
Kerstin Konrad

Objectives: Although clear advances have been achieved in the study of early-onset schizophrenia (EOS), little is known to date about premorbid and prodromal neuropsychological functioning in EOS. Method: Here, we report on a case of an adolescent male with EOS who underwent neuropsychological testing before and after illness onset. Results: Marked cognitive deficits in the domains of attention, set-shifting, and verbal memory were present both pre-onset and during the course of schizophrenia, though only deficits in verbal memory persisted after illness-onset and antipsychotic treatment. Conclusion: The findings of this case study suggest that impairments in the verbal memory domain are particularly prominent symptoms of cognitive impairment in prodromal EOS and persist in the course of the disorder, which further demonstrates the difficult clinical situation of adequate schooling opportunities for adolescent patients with EOS.


2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 68-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sibylle Heinze ◽  
Gudrun Sartory ◽  
Bernhard W. Müller ◽  
Armin de Greiff ◽  
Michael Forsting ◽  
...  

Neuroimaging studies have indicated involvement of left prefrontal cortex and temporal areas in verbal memory processes. The current study used event-related functional neuroimaging to compare encoding of subsequently recalled and not recalled words in high and low memory performers. Fifteen healthy volunteers were given lists of words to learn with immediate recall and to read as a control condition. High performers reported to have visualized the words whereas low performers used a rehearsal strategy. Compared to reading, unsuccessful encoding was associated with thalamic and left premotor area (BA 6) activity. Comparing successful with unsuccessful learning yielded widespread activity of the left prefrontal and posterior temporal gyrus as well as the left superior parietal lobe in the whole group. Low performers showed activation of the left premotor area throughout learning and additionally of the left middle temporal and parahippocampal gyrus during successful encoding. High performers showed increased activation in the extrastriate cortex throughout learning and additionally in the left parietal post- and paracentral areas as well as in the right precuneus during successful encoding. The results suggest that high verbal memory performance is the result of spatiovisual activation concomitant to imagery and low performance of hippocampal and motor activation, the latter being associated with rehearsal, with a common memory circuit subserving both groups.


2010 ◽  
Vol 218 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Slawomira J. Diener ◽  
Herta Flor ◽  
Michèle Wessa

Impairments in declarative memory have been reported in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Fragmentation of explicit trauma-related memory has been assumed to impede the formation of a coherent memorization of the traumatic event and the integration into autobiographic memory. Together with a strong non-declarative memory that connects trauma reminders with a fear response the impairment in declarative memory is thought to be involved in the maintenance of PTSD symptoms. Fourteen PTSD patients, 14 traumatized subjects without PTSD, and 13 non-traumatized healthy controls (HC) were tested with the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) to assess verbal declarative memory. PTSD symptoms were assessed with the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale and depression with the Center of Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Several indices of the CVLT pointed to an impairment in declarative memory performance in PTSD, but not in traumatized persons without PTSD or HC. No group differences were observed if recall of memory after a time delay was set in relation to initial learning performance. In the PTSD group verbal memory performance correlated significantly with hyperarousal symptoms, after concentration difficulties were accounted for. The present study confirmed previous reports of declarative verbal memory deficits in PTSD. Extending previous results, we propose that learning rather than memory consolidation is impaired in PTSD patients. Furthermore, arousal symptoms may interfere with successful memory formation in PTSD.


1995 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dietmar Heubrock

Performance on a German version of the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) was investigated for 64 juvenile patients who were subdivided in 6 clinical groups. In addition to standard evaluation of AVLT protocols which is usually confined to items recalled correctly, an error analysis was performed. Differentiating between total errors (TE), repetition errors (RE), and misnamings (ME), substantial differences between clinical groups could be demonstrated. It is argued that error analysis of verbal memory and learning enriches the understanding of neuropsychological syndromes, and provides additional information for diagnostic and clinical use. Thus, it is possible to gain a more accurate picture so that patients can be appropriately retrained, and research into the functional causes of memory and learning disorders can be intensified.


Author(s):  
Don van Ravenzwaaij ◽  
Han L. J. van der Maas ◽  
Eric-Jan Wagenmakers

Research using the Implicit Association Test (IAT) has shown that names labeled as Caucasian elicit more positive associations than names labeled as non-Caucasian. One interpretation of this result is that the IAT measures latent racial prejudice. An alternative explanation is that the result is due to differences in in-group/out-group membership. In this study, we conducted three different IATs: one with same-race Dutch names versus racially charged Moroccan names; one with same-race Dutch names versus racially neutral Finnish names; and one with Moroccan names versus Finnish names. Results showed equivalent effects for the Dutch-Moroccan and Dutch-Finnish IATs, but no effect for the Finnish-Moroccan IAT. This suggests that the name-race IAT-effect is not due to racial prejudice. A diffusion model decomposition indicated that the IAT-effects were caused by changes in speed of information accumulation, response conservativeness, and non-decision time.


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