scholarly journals Which Factors Influence Attentional Functions? Attention Assessed by KiTAP in 105 6-to-10-Year-Old Children

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Tremolada ◽  
Livia Taverna ◽  
Sabrina Bonichini
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Lower Grade ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
School Grade ◽  
Attentional Difficulties

This research revealed the children with difficulties in attentional functions among healthy children attending primary school and aimed to identify the possible sociodemographic factors, such as the child’s age, gender, and school grade, that could influence attentive performance. The participants were 105 children aged 6–10 years (M age = 8.6; SD = 1.04), attending primary schools. Family economic condition was mostly at a medium level (63.5%), and parents most frequently had 13 years of schooling. The computerized test KiTAP was administered to children to assess their attentional functions. Results showed a higher frequency of omissions and false alarms and a reduced speed in alertness, go/no-go, and sustained attention tasks compared to Italian norms. Hierarchical regression analyses were run with school grade, gender, and current age as independent variables and mean reaction times (and standard deviation), number of omissions, and false alarms as dependent ones. The results showed that male gender and attending a lower grade impacted on lower attentional performance in several subtests. Girls showed the best performances in tests of distractibility and impulsive reaction tendencies, while higher school grade positively influenced divided and sustained attention. These results could be useful to identify children with major attentional difficulties, and some recommendations for future studies and the implementation of attention empowerment programmes are proposed.

scholarly journals Which Factors Influence Attentional Functions? Attention Assessed by KiTAP in 105 6- to 10-Year-Old Children

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Tremolada ◽  
Livia Taverna ◽  
Sabrina Bonichini
Keyword(s):  
Primary School ◽  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
School Grade ◽  
Attentional Difficulties ◽  
Socio Demographic Factors

This research revealed the children with difficulties in attentional functions in healthy children attending primary school and aimed to identify the possible socio-demographic factors such as child’s age, gender and school’s grade that could influence attentive performance. The participants were 105 children aged 6-10 years (M age=8.6; SD=1.04), 57 females, attending primary schools. Family economic condition attested mostly at a medium level (63.5%) and parents had more frequently 13 years of schooling. The computerized test KiTAP was administered to children to assess attentional functions. Results showed higher frequency of omissions and false alarms and a reduced speed in Alertness, Go/No go and Sustained Attention tasks comparing to Italian norms. A series of hierarchical regression analyses were run with school grade, gender and current age as independent variables and mean reaction times (and standard deviation), number of omissions and of false alarms as dependent ones. Results showed male gender and attending a lower primary school grade impacting on lower attentional performance in several subtests. Females showed the best performances in distractibility and impulsive reaction tendencies tests, while higher school grade positively influenced the divided and sustained attention. These results could be useful to identify children with major attentional difficulties and some recommendations for futures studies and implement attention empowerment programmes were proposed.

Attention profiles in autistic children with and without comorbid hyperactivity and attention problems

2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 207-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Sinzig ◽  
Nicole Bruning ◽  
Dagmar Morsch ◽  
Gerd Lehmkuhl
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Divided Attention ◽  
Neuropsychological Functioning ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Adhd Group ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
Adhd Symptoms ◽  
Autistic Children ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Comorbid Adhd

Objective:Psychopathological, neuropsychological and genetic findings indicate an association between ASD Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The goal of this study was to compare the neuropsychological profiles of attention functions in children with ADHD and with ASD and without comorbid ADHD. The hypothesis was that either ADHD and autistic children with comorbid ADHD symptoms were more impaired in inhibition and sustained attention performance and that all individuals with ASD show more deficits in divided attention.Method:Children aged 6 to 18 years old with ADHD (n = 30) or ASD with (n = 21) and without comorbid ADHD (n = 20) and 30 healthy children were included consecutively. Psychopathology was evaluated using the KIDDIE-SADS and symptom checklists for ADHD and ASD according to DSM-IV. Assessed neuropsychological functioning included inhibition, sustained as well as divided attention and alertness tasks.Results:Age and IQ-corrected z-scores were used. Statistically significant group effects were found for the variables sustained attention median (F = 3.2, = .02), hits (F = 3.3, p = .02) and false alarms (F = 3.9, p = .01), divided attention hits (F = 3.3, p = .02), errors (F = 3.1, p = .03) and false alarms (F = 3.3, p = .03) and alertness false alarms (F = 2.9, p = .04). Pearson Correlations revealed associations between ADHD symptoms and sustained attention in the ADHD group and between ADHD symptoms and inhibition in the ASD+ group.Conclusion:Our hypothesis was partly confirmed as ADHD children showed more deficits in sustained attention and ASD children in divided attention tasks. However there was no evidence that children with ASD and comorbid ADHD symptoms have a specific profile in comparison to pure ASD children.

The role of the Big Five personality factors in vigilance performance and workload

2002 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 185-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Laurie Rose ◽  
Laura Bennett Murphy ◽  
Lynn Byard ◽  
Katherina Nikzad
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Times ◽  
Personality Factors ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Big Five Personality ◽  
Perceptual Sensitivity ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Perceived Workload ◽  
Big Five Personality Factors ◽  
Task Parameters

Using the five‐factor personality model, the present study explored the influence of personality factors on sustained attention and perceived workload. Ninety‐six college‐aged participants were administered a 12 minute vigilance fast event rate task. Following the vigil, participants were asked to first, rate their perceived workload of the task using the NASA‐TLX, and then second, complete the NEO‐PI‐R personality inventory. Traditional measures of hits, false alarms, and reaction times were examined as well as the signal detection indices of perceptual sensitivity and response bias. Extraversion correlated with false alarms (r = 0.181; eta2 = 0.055) and conscientiousness correlated with both false alarms (r = −0.275, eta2 = 0.097) and perceptual sensitivity (r = 0.227, eta2 = 0.052). With regard to perceived workload, neuroticism was related to perceived frustration (r = 0.238, eta2 = 0.057). The findings are discussed in terms of theoretical implications, impact of task parameters, and practical applications. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Behavioural Vigilance in Schizophrenia

1996 ◽  
Vol 169 (6) ◽  
pp. 781-789 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinne M. Mar ◽  
David A. Smith ◽  
Martin Sarter
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Testing Procedure ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Vigilance Decrement ◽  
Monetary Rewards ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
Behavioural Test ◽  
Signal Detectability ◽  
And Gender ◽  
And Control

BackgroundDespite 30 years of research, some surprisingly fundamental gaps remain in our understanding of schizophrenic input dysfunctions.MethodIn a provisional test of a ‘hyperattention’ hypothesis, schizophrenic patients and control subjects performed a behavioural test that was adapted from a paradigm originally developed for characterising vigilance or sustained attention in animals. On this computerised operant testing procedure, subjects discriminated between signals of various salience and non-signal presentations. Hits and correct rejections resulted in monetary rewards while misses and false alarms entailed monetary costs.ResultsData from in-patients with schizophrenia and age, education and gender-matched controls support hypotheses not only about hyperattentional dysfunctions in schizophrenia with respect to overall signal detectability but also in terms of resistance to the vigilance decrement that normally occurs over trials.ConclusionsThe theoretical importance of impairments of this sort are discussed with respect to the cognitive and perceptual consequences of hypervigilance and ‘input dysfunction’.

scholarly journals Food insecurity and social determinants of students’ low adherence to the Mediterranean diet

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
T Tsiampalis ◽  
A Petralias ◽  
A Linos
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Mediterranean Diet ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Univariate Analysis ◽  
Multivariable Analysis ◽  
School Grade ◽  
Nursery Schools ◽  
The Mediterranean

Abstract Background Despite the fact that the Meditteranean diet is highly beneficiary for people’s health, there are many factors which cause disparities in the level of adherence. The aim of the present work was to investigate the effect of household food insecurity (FI) on adherence to the Mediterranean diet (AMD), to explore the participants’ characteristics modifying the studied relationship and find the social determinants of students’ low adherence to the specific dietary pattern. Methods A cross-sectional study with 140 schools and 4,242 students was conducted in Greece (2017-2018). Especially designed and validated instruments were used to record students’ sociodemographic characteristics, household’s FI status and students’ AMD. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to investigate the effect of FI and to identify the significant social determinants of students’ AMD, according to students’ school grade. Results After adjusting for other characteristics, students whose both parents are born in other countries, spend at most 4 hours/week on TV/electronic games, live in the regions of Peloponnese, Central Macedonia or Attica and attend primary schools adhere more to the Mediterranean diet, while higher level of physical activity and lower FI are significantly associated with better AMD. Parents’ educational level in nursery schools (p = 0.002) and employment status in nursery schools (p = 0.012) and in high schools/ lyceums (p = 0.008) were found to modify significantly the studied relationship in the univariate analysis, while school grade (p = 0.013) and physical activity (p = 0.088) were found to modify the studied relationship in the multivariable analysis. Conclusions Several demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle characteristics were significantly associated with students’ AMD. Thus, emphasis should be given on the design of special programs to reduce household FI and intervene in the rest characteristics. Key messages Researchers and policymakers should consider food insecurity as important risk factor for school-aged children, particularly for those who live in poverty. Emphasis should be given on the design of special low-cost programs aiming to reduce food insecurity.

scholarly journals The Sustained Attention to Response Task Shows Lower Cingulo-Opercular and Frontoparietal Activity in People with Narcolepsy Type 1: An fMRI Study on the Neural Regulation of Attention

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 419
Author(s):  
Jari K. Gool ◽  
Ysbrand D. van der Werf ◽  
Gert Jan Lammers ◽  
Rolf Fronczek
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Group Performance ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Vigilance Task ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Time On Task ◽  
Related Activity ◽  
Response Task

Vigilance complaints often occur in people with narcolepsy type 1 and severely impair effective daytime functioning. We tested the feasibility of a three-level sustained attention to response task (SART) paradigm within a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) environment to understand brain architecture underlying vigilance regulation in individuals with narcolepsy type 1. Twelve medication-free people with narcolepsy type 1 and 11 matched controls were included. The SART included four repetitions of a baseline block and two difficulty levels requiring moderate and high vigilance. Outcome measures were between and within-group performance indices on error rates and reaction times, and functional MRI (fMRI) parameters: mean activity during the task and between-group activity differences across the three conditions and related to changes in activation over time (time-on-task) and error-related activity. Patients—but not controls—made significantly more mistakes with increasing difficulty. The modified SART is a feasible MRI vigilance task showing similar task-positive brain activity in both groups within the cingulo-opercular, frontoparietal, arousal, motor, and visual networks. During blocks of higher vigilance demand, patients had significantly lower activation in these regions than controls. Patients had lower error-related activity in the left pre- and postcentral gyrus. The time-on-task activity differences between groups suggest that those with narcolepsy are insufficiently capable of activating attention- and arousal-related regions when transitioning from attention initiation to stable attention, specifically when vigilance demand is high. They also show lower inhibitory motor activity in relation to errors, suggesting impaired executive functioning.

Study addiction among musicians: Measurement, and relationship with personality, social anxiety, performance, and psychosocial functioning

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 449-474
Author(s):  
Rafał Lawendowski ◽  
Piotr Bereznowski ◽  
Wiktor K. Wróbel ◽  
Michał Kierzkowski ◽  
Paweł A. Atroszko
Keyword(s):  
Social Anxiety ◽  
Psychosocial Functioning ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
Lower Grade ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Grade Point ◽  
Work Addiction ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences ◽  
High Social Anxiety

Adverse health-related consequences of perfectionistic over-involvement in work are well-documented among professional musicians. The aim of this study was to investigate a recently developed concept of “study addiction” among students of music academies. Study addiction has been defined within the framework of theory and research on work addiction as a potential behavioral addiction. A cross-sectional correlational study was conducted among 132 students of music academies in Poland. The Bergen Study Addiction Scale (BStAS), reflecting seven core addiction symptoms related to studying, was employed together with commonly used measures of personality and well-being. A one-factor solution had an acceptable fit with the data in the sample of music academies’ students. Multiple hierarchical regression analyses showed that study addiction was related to low extraversion and high social anxiety. Study addiction was related to specific aspects of studying (longer learning time, lower academic performance) and to indicators of decreased well-being (impaired general health, decreased quality of life and sleep quality, higher perceived stress). As expected, study addiction was positively related to learning engagement. However, while the latter was associated positively with psychosocial functioning indicators, study addiction was related negatively to these variables. Furthermore, social anxiety was found to be a mediator between emotional stability/extraversion and study addiction. Moderation analyses revealed that social anxiety was related to a lower grade point average (GPA) only for these students who were high on study addiction. Using a cut-off score based on a polythetic approach showed that 16% of students were addicted to studying. The results suggest that among students at music academies, study addiction can be validly measured and that it has similar potential antecedents and consequences to that in the general population of students. Considering the estimate of study addiction prevalence in this group, further systematic studies among musicians are highly warranted.

scholarly journals Continuous Performance Tasks: Not Just About Sustaining Attention

2016 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 501-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hettie Roebuck ◽  
Claudia Freigang ◽  
Johanna G. Barry
Keyword(s):  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Developmental Disorders ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Continuous Performance ◽  
Performance Tasks ◽  
Tone Condition ◽  
Adults And Children ◽  
Time Variations ◽  
Continuous Performance Tasks

Purpose Continuous performance tasks (CPTs) are used to measure individual differences in sustained attention. Many different stimuli have been used as response targets without consideration of their impact on task performance. Here, we compared CPT performance in typically developing adults and children to assess the role of stimulus processing on error rates and reaction times. Method Participants completed a CPT that was based on response to infrequent targets, while monitoring and withholding responses to regular nontargets. Performance on 3 stimulus conditions was compared: visual letters (X and O), their auditory analogs, and auditory pure tones. Results Adults showed no difference in error propensity across the 3 conditions but had slower reaction times for auditory stimuli. Children had slower overall reaction times. They responded most quickly to the visual target and most slowly to the tone target. They also made more errors in the tone condition than in either the visual or the auditory spoken CPT conditions. Conclusions The results suggest error propensity and reaction time variations on CPTs cannot solely be interpreted as evidence of inattention. They also reflect stimulus-specific influences that must be considered when testing hypotheses about modality-specific deficits in sustained attention in populations with different developmental disorders.

Performance in Vigilance Tasks is Related to Both State and Contextual Motivation

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 1145-1149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexis R. Dewar ◽  
Nicholas W. Fraulini ◽  
Victoria L. Claypoole ◽  
James L. Szalma
Keyword(s):  
Intrinsic Motivation ◽  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Vigilance Task ◽  
False Alarms ◽  
Time On Task ◽  
Vigilance Decrement ◽  
Vigilance Performance ◽  
Task Instructions ◽  
State Motivation

Vigilance, or sustained attention, is the ability to maintain attention to stimuli over a prolonged period of time. Synonymous with the study of sustained attention is the vigilance decrement, which is a decline in performance as a function of time on task. In the present study, we examined the effects of state motivation (i.e., motivation measured immediately prior to the task) and context-based motivation (i.e., motivation that stems from task instructions) on vigilance performance in a sensory-based vigilance task. Forty-three participants completed a 24-minute vigilance task, as well as measures of stress and workload. The results indicated that those higher in state intrinsic motivation and motivating instructions outperformed their peers in terms of hits and false alarms. We conclude that motivation may help facilitate vigilant attention.

scholarly journals Illness absenteeism rates in primary and secondary schools in 2013–2014 in England: was there any impact of vaccinating children of primary-school age against influenza?

2016 ◽  
Vol 144 (16) ◽  
pp. 3412-3421 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. K. GREEN ◽  
N. BROUSSEAU ◽  
N. ANDREWS ◽  
L. SELBY ◽  
R. PEBODY
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
School Level ◽  
First Year ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
Multilevel Regression ◽  
Indirect Impact ◽  
Influenza Activity ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Primary School Age

SUMMARYA phased introduction of routine influenza vaccination of healthy children was recommended in the UK in 2012, with the aim of protecting both vaccinated children and the wider population through reducing transmission. In the first year of the programme in 2013–2014, 4- to 11-year-olds were targeted in pilot areas across England. This study assesses if this was associated with school absenteeism, an important societal burden of influenza. During the spring 2014 term when influenza predominantly circulated, the proportion of absence sessions due to illness was compared between vaccination pilot and non-pilot areas for primary schools (to measure overall impact) and secondary schools (to measure indirect impact). A linear multilevel regression model was applied, adjusting for clustering within schools and potential school-level confounders, including deprivation, past absenteeism, and ethnicity. Low levels of influenza activity were reported in the community in 2013–2014. Primary schools in pilot areas had a significantly adjusted decrease in illness absenteeism of 0·05% relative to non-pilot schools; equivalent to an average of 4 days per school. In secondary schools, there was no significant indirect impact of being located in a pilot area on illness absenteeism. These insights can be used in conjunction with routine healthcare surveillance data to evaluate the full benefits of such a programme.

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