Raymond S. Dean

Factors underlying distance learner satisfaction with televised college‐level courses

Abstract Two investigations were conducted to identify the major dimensions of distance learner satisfaction with live‐broadcast, interactive (one‐way video, two‐way audio) televised college‐level courses. In the first study, factor analyses were used to explore the responses of 201 currently enrolled students to the Telecourse Evaluation Questionnaire. The analyses identified seven distinct dimensions of course satisfaction. A comparable study was conducted one year later using a different sample of 177 distance learners who were also enrolled in the televised courses. A factor analysis of these data validated the original results in that, as predicted, seven comparable dimensions were identified. Overall results are discussed in terms of the practical benefits the research offers to both program personnel and evaluation researchers.

PERINATAL COMPLICATIONS AS PREDICTORS OF INFANTILE AUTISM

This study investigated the relationship between reported perinatal complications and autism. The biological mothers of 183 autistic children and 209 normals completed the Maternal Perinatal Scale (MPS), a maternal self-report that surveys complications of pregnancies and medical conditions of the mother. Previous research in this area has been limited, with no definitive conclusions. A discriminant analysis was performed to consider perinatal complications as predictors between the autistic and normal subjects. Using the MPS, 65% of the autistic cases were correctly grouped. The results further indicated significant differences on 3 of the 10 factors of the MPS, in particular, Gestational Age, Maternal Morphology, and Intrauterine Stress. When considered in an item by item fashion, 5 items were found to significantly predict group membership (prescriptions taken during pregnancy, length of labor, viral infection, abnormal presentation at delivery, and low birth weight). Finally, 3 maternal medical conditions were found to be highly significant and contribute to the separation between groups, including urinary infection, high temperatures, and depression.

Personality characteristics differentiating and predicting the achievement of televised‐course students and traditional‐course students 1

Abstract A large‐scale field study was conducted to 1) determine if the personality traits of students enrolled in televised college‐level courses differ from the personality traits of students enrolled in traditional college‐level courses and 2) identify the specific personality traits predictive of successful performance in televised classes. Results showed that students enrolled in telecourses do have a unique personality profile and that certain traits predicted success for these students. Implications of these results are discussed.

Utilization of maternal perinatal risk indicators in the differential diagnosis of adhd and uadd children

The purpose of this study was to differentiate between children diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), children with Undifferentiated Attention-Deficit Disorder (UADD) and a control group using maternal perinatal information. The sample consisted of 74 ADHD, 56 UADD, and 135 normal children between the ages of 6 years, 5 months and 13 years, 4 months. The results supported the use of maternal perinatal information in the diagnosis of attention disorders. More specifically, the greater the number of medical conditions prior or during their pregnancy the more likely a child was diagnosed with an attention deficit disorder. In addition, if the mother experienced moderate emotional stress or smoked cigarettes during pregnancy the child was more likely to be diagnosed with an attention deficit disorder.

Evidence of construct similarity in Executive Functions and Fluid Reasoning abilities.

Executive Functions and Fluid Reasoning are both considered to be core aspects of intelligence and mediated by frontal lobe functioning. However, both constructs considerably overlap, and the distinction between the two constructs is unclear. For this study, three measures of Executive Functions and three measures of Fluid Reasoning were administered to a group of participants. Significant correlations were found establishing an empirical association between these two constructs. Factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis also provide evidence for construct similarity. Future research in defining these constructs for measurement purposes and using tests of these constructs in clinical practice is discussed.

The Canonical Relationship Between Sensory-Motor Functioning and Cognitive Processing in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) typically exhibits a pattern of behavioral deficits, impairment in academic achievement, and cognitive processing, and presents with sensory-motor deficits. This study examined the relationships between sensory-motor tasks, cognitive processing, and academic achievement for a group of 67 children with ADHD. Strong canonical correlations emerged between sensory-motor functioning and academic achievement (.93) and sensory-motor functioning and cognitive processing (.98). An analysis of the redundancy coefficient showed that sensory-motor skills accounted for 65% of the variance in the achievement variables and 31% of the variance in the cognitive processing variables. The strong relationship between sensory-motor skills and higher order cognitive processes indicates that early assessment of sensory-motor skills may be useful in the identification of subsequent deficits in academic performance. Neuropsychologists should carefully consider the contribution of sensory-motor functioning to the more widely studied and assessed constructs of academic, behavioral, and emotional problems in children with ADHD.

The effect of modality on long-term recognition memory

Two experiments examined the effects of visual and auditory modes of input on long-term memory. In Experiment 1, 40 subjects learned a 40-word list presented in a blocked or random fashion. In the blocked conditions learners were presented half the nouns in one modality followed by the remaining 20 words in the other modality (See-Hear or Hear-See). Subjects in random conditions also received half the list in each modality, but the presentation was random (Mixed or Mixed Reverse). Following a 6-min delay, subjects completed an 80-item visual recognition test. Analysis of these data showed significantly (p < .05) greater recognition of words presented visually than those presented auditorily. Experiment 2 was designed to test the hypothesis that learners may visualize a “literal copy” of the stimulus item by controlling for the extent to which the recognition measure offered a visual cue. Two groups of 40 subjects were examined using the same procedure used in Experiment 1, with the exception that one group received a visual recognition test while the other was tested auditorily. These data showed that the lack of a visual cue hindered the recognition of visually presented words, while it had little effect on stimuli presented auditorily. The results of these experiments were interpreted as support for the hypothesis that physical characteristics of a stimulus may persist in memory well beyond immediate memory intervals. Subjects were seen to make modality-specific decisions by testing long-term memory for the presence or absence of a visual memory trace.

TEST REVIEW: Dean C. Delis, Edith Kaplan & Joel H. Kramer, Delis Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS), The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio, TX, 2001.

The Delis Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS; Delis, Kaplan, & Kramer, 2001) is a comprehensive battery of nine individually administered tests that provides normative and qualitative data assessing higher level cognitive functions (reasoning, problem solving, planning, etc.). Executive functions can be defined as capacities that enable a person to engage successfully in independent, purposive, self-serving behavior (Lezak et al, 2005). Each test in the D-KEFS is designed to be a stand-alone measure of executive functioning, and there are no aggregate indexes, or composite scores. The battery offers one of the first psychometrically sound, nationally normed set of tests designed exclusively for the assessment of verbal and nonverbal executive functions in children, adolescents, and adults. Indeed, normative data are based on a sample of over 1,700 individuals ranging in age from 8 to 89 years. Neuropsychologists will be familiar with many of the tests in the D-KEFS, such as a version of a tower test and a trail-making test, yet the D-KEFS has greatly improved on earlier, psychometrically troubled versions of these tasks. A strength of the D-KEFS is that, in addition to overall performance scores for each of the nine tests, the D-KEFS provides process scores that offer insight into performance scores. Results from the D-KEFS can be used to assess the integrity of the frontal systems of the brain, and to determine how deficits in higher order thinking may impact an individual’s functioning. Individual performance can be used to develop coping strategies and rehabilitation programs tailored to an individual patient’s profile of strengths and weaknesses in executive functioning. The D-KEFS is a battery of cognitive assessment; as such, only a neuropsychologist with formal training and experience should administer and interpret the battery. ADMINISTRATION

415.00 (complete kit)

Research concerning the lateralization of human brain functions is examined in light of the recent publication of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC). Following a review of research methodologies and functions ascribed to the hemispheres of the brain, differences are portrayed as complementary and coexisting modes of cognitive processing. Referred to by various terms, these dual modes of thought are seen to correspond to the simultaneous-sequential distinction offered as the theoretical underpinnings of the mental processing scales of the K-ABC.

Functional Lateralization of the Brain

Differences between practitioners in the selection of tests of specific pathognomonic sensory and motor signs, administration procedures, and scoring criteria have resulted in inconsistencies that have confounded attempts to study the incidence and patterns of deficits. Tests of sensory -motor functioning have been standardized in the Dean-Woodcock Sensory -Motor Battery (D-WSMB; Dean and Woodcock, in preparation). This study used the D-WSMB to: (a) estimate the point-prevalence of pathognomonic signs in a normal adult; (b) identify items with difficulty levels likely to result in overidentification of abnormality; (c) estimate the interrater agreement and reliability for items; and (d) identify tests most vulnerable to subjective interpretation. Results suggested adequate to excellent rater agreement and reliability. Specific minor modifications are recommended to improve the reliability of these tests.