Cognitive tools assessing normal and disabled children

University Of Texas Arlington, Arlington TX

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Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A programmatic line of research investigating the cognitive functioning of normal and learning disabled children will be conducted using memory conjunction errors and illusory conjunctions. Memory conjunction errors occur when an individual inappropriately combines features from different events to construct a novel event memory. The proposed research investigates the rote of gist memory in constraining the formation of memory conjunction errors. A similar type of error occurs in perception. Illusory conjunctions occur when basic level features from different objects are inappropriately bound together. Illusory conjunctions provide a means of assessing how individuals preattentively parse the world. This paradigm provides a tool for identifying differences in how normal and dyslexic children and adults parse words into reading units. Individuals are more likely to form illusory conjunctions by combining features from within the same reading unit than from different reading units. If dyslexics are unable to parse words into reading units they will not demonstrate this same pattern. Principles learned in this research will be applied to rehabilitation efforts.