Digital Commons Network^™

Speech Fluency In Acquired Apraxia Of Speech During Narrative Discourse: Group Comparisons And Dual Task Effects, Tyson G. Harmon, Adam Jacks, Katarina L. Haley

Faculty Publications

Purpose: Slowed speech and interruptions to the flow of connected speech are common in aphasia. These features are also observed during dual task performance for neurotypical adults. The purposes of this study were to determine (a) whether indices of fluency related to cognitive-linguistic versus motor processing would differ between speakers with aphasia plus AOS and speakers with aphasia only and (b) whether cognitive load reduces fluency in speakers with aphasia with and without AOS.

Method: Fourteen speakers with aphasia (seven with AOS) and seven neurotypical controls retold short stories alone (single task) and while simultaneously distinguishing between a high and …

How Instruction, Math Anxiety, And Math Achievement Affect Learning A Novel Math Task: Evidence For Better Instruction, Amy Jane Mcauley

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The primary goal of this paper is to test how math anxiety, achievement, and instruction affect learning a novel math task. Currently, most research measures achievement and math anxiety on previously learned tasks. A two-part study was proposed to measure the effects of math anxiety on learning modular arithmetic (MA), a novel math task that involves subtraction and division. Participants of varying degrees of anxiety and achievement were randomly assigned to either a specific or vague instruction condition. Participants were either taught how to solve the task or given minimal information about how to solve the task. Before moving on, …

Subjective Cognitive Functioning Relates To Parenting In Mothers With Chronic Pain, Denae S. Clohessy

University Honors Theses

Individuals with chronic pain commonly report problems with daily cognitive functioning. This feeling of decreased subjective cognitive functioning (SCF) can be distressing due to its impact on daily life and relationships. Children of parents with chronic pain are at an increased risk for the development of chronic pain and related impairment and it is possible that lower parental SCF could increase this risk. Specifically, mothers with lower SCF may have difficulty completing day-to-day caregiving activities as well as responding flexibly to children’s behaviors. The present study focused on examining the impact of SCF on parenting in mothers with chronic pain. …

Circumventing Spatio-Numeric Biases Through Non-Numeric Assessments Of Perceived Causal Strength, Daniel William Czarnowski

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Knowledge of cause and effect allows individuals to meaningfully interpret the events they perceive in the world, and the understanding of causality is thought to be grounded in the understanding of forces (Wolf, Ritter, & Holmes, 2014). Previous research has linked handedness with both the ability to exert force (e.g., Linkenauger et al., 2005) and causal learning (e.g., Goedert & Czarnowski, 2017). Historically, number lines have been used to assess causality, but because handedness has a strong spatial element, SNARC effects may influence judgments (Fias, 1996). The current experiment replicates previous work by Goedert and Czarnowski (2017) but changes the …

Let's Talk About Dementia: The Effects Of Dementia On Communicative Functions, Mary Kate Hoeve

Honors Projects

A general outline and presentation designed for a seminar setting aimed toward an audience of medical staff in skilled nursing facilities. The purpose of this training is to educate frequent communication partners of those with dementia about effective communication tactics, as well as, a brief definition of dementia. Additionally, a small portion is dedicated to dysphagia. The possible role of a speech-language pathologist in dementia care is also discussed throughout the training.

Concussion In Student Athletes: Prevention, Assessment, And Recovery, Miriam A. Carroll-Alfano

Dissertations

The research presented in this study examines concussion among athletes from the perspectives of prevention, assessment, and recovery. The first study examines concussion education for high school athletes by surveying 157 collegiate athletes, who primarily attended high school in Illinois and Indiana, about the previous concussion education, including whether they received mandated education, the methods and providers of education, and their ability to name a variety of concussion symptoms. This study finds that despite legislative mandates in these states, 20% of student-athletes continue to report not receiving concussion education in high school, with females more likely to report not receiving …

The Cognitive Effects Of Late Bilingualism On Executive Functions: Lifelong Benefits, Rachel Casper

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Late bilinguals, those who learn a language past the critical period, are often thought to not receive much benefits from their language learning in comparison to their early bilingual counterparts. A large of body of recent research suggests otherwise. Late bilinguals receive the same cognitive benefits as early bilinguals; these benefits are in higher levels of executive functions, specifically in inhibitory control and attentional switching. Higher levels of executive functions assist learners in improving their mental processing and cognitive health over the course of their lifetime. Aging bilinguals have greater cognitive health due to more white and gray matter density. …

Functional Brain Activation Changes Associated With Practice In Delaying Smoking Among Moderate To Heavy Smokers: Study Protocol And Rationale Of A Randomized Trial (Cope)., Andrew T. Fox, Delwyn Catley, Kimber P. Richter, Edward F. Ellerbeck, Morgan G. Brucks, Vlad B. Papa, Laura E. Martin

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Most smokers struggle to overcome tobacco addiction. Neuroscientific models of addiction emphasize the importance of brain regions associated with cognitive control and reward to understand the cycle of addiction and relapse. During an attempt at abstinence, the cognitive control system appears to be underpowered to override the heightened reward system of the addicted brain. Thus, one neural target for treatment is to strengthen the cognitive control system. It may be possible to improve the functioning of the cognitive control system via deliberate practice.

METHODS/DESIGN: This study will determine the effects of practicing delaying smoking on brain and behavioral measures …

Second Language Semantic Retrieval In The Bilingual Mind: The Case Of Korean-English Expert Bilinguals, Janice Si-Man Lam

Theses and Dissertations

The present study aims to explore the relationship between proficiency level and semantic retrieval in the second language. A group of Korean bilinguals who speak English with high proficiency performed semantic relatedness judgement tasks of two hundred English word pairs. Unbeknownst to the participants, half of the words in both the related and the unrelated categories contained a "hidden prime"—a common first syllable shared by the two words, if translated into Korean. Each participant's event-related potential (ERP) was recorded while reading the words. While a former study by Thierry and Wu (2007) found that Chinese-English bilinguals were affected by the …

Effects Of Hearing Loss On General Cognitive Health And Social Auditory Lifestyle Within The Older Population, Sawyer Milam, Scott Seeman

AuD Capstone Projects - Communication Sciences and Disorders

Hearing loss is a common medical condition associated with the elderly. Its impact on general cognitive health has been extensively studied, along with its association with social auditory lifestyle. Hearing loss has been associated with a decline in both aspects (Lin, 2011a; Wu and Bentler, 2012), however, studies involving all three of these factors have yet to be performed. Further research is needed to encompass how these three facets, when combined, affect the elderly population. A literature review of 21 articles was conducted in order to reveal how hearing loss is associated with general cognitive health and social auditory lifestyle.

Validation Of The Barkley Deficits Of Executive Functioning Scale-Short Form, Brian Sheble

Dissertations

The Barkley Deficits of Executive Functioning-Short Form (BDEFS-SF) is a short rating scale measuring executive functioning in adults. The BDEFS-SF was developed using the 5 highest loading questions from the BDEFS-LF. Consequently, the psychometric qualities of the BDEFS-SF were not investigated using formal methods. In this study, the psychometric attributes of the BDEFS-SF were examined using two separate but similar groups. The first group of 264 men and women aged 18-35 years old completed the BDEFS-SF via an internet survey. The second group of 36 men and women aged 18-35 years old completed the BDEFS-SF and individualized assessments of executive …

Cardiorespiratory Fitness Is Associated With Physical Literacy In A Large Sample Of Canadian Children Aged 8 To 12 Years, Justin J. Lang, Jean-Philippe Chaput, Patricia E. Longmuir, Joel D. Burnes, Kevin Belanger, Grant R. Tomkinson, Kristal D. Anderson, Brenda Bruner, Jennifer L. Copeland, Melanie J. Gregg, Nathan Hall, Angela M. Kolen, Kirstin N. Lane, Barbi Law, Dany J. Macdonald, Luc J. Martin, Travis J. Saunders, Dwayne Sheehan, Michelle R. Stone, Sarah J. Woodruff, Mark S. Tremblay

Education, Health & Behavior Studies Faculty Publications

Background

The associations between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and physical literacy in children are largely unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the relationships between CRF, measured using the 20-m shuttle run test (20mSRT), and components of physical literacy among Canadian children aged 8–12 years.

Methods

A total of 9393 (49.9% girls) children, with a mean (SD) age of 10.1 (±1.2) years, from a cross-sectional surveillance study were included for this analysis. The SRT was evaluated using a standardized 15 m or 20 m protocol. All 15 m SRTs were converted to 20mSRT values using a standardized formula. The …

Home-Based, Square-Stepping Exercise Program Among Older Adults With Multiple Sclerosis: Results Of A Feasibility Randomized Controlled Study, Emerson Sebastião, Edward Mcauley, Ryosuke Shigematsu, Brynn C. Adamson, Rachel Bollaert, Robert W. Motl

Exercise Science Faculty Research and Publications

There is very little known about exercise rehabilitation approaches for older adults with multiple sclerosis (MS), yet this growing segment of the MS population experiences declines in cognition and mobility associated with disease progression and aging. We conducted a RCT examining the feasibility of a 12-week, home-based Square-Stepping Exercise (SSE) program in older adults with MS. Older adults with MS (N = 26) with mild-to-moderate levels of disability were recruited and randomized into the intervention (i.e., SSE) or a minimal activity, attention-control conditions. Participants in the SSE condition received a mat for home-based practice of the step patterns, an …

Detecting Cognitive, Functional And Behavioral Response To Donepezil In Alzheimer’S Disease: The Role Of Attention Tasks, Clara Vila-Castelar

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Introduction: Cholinesterase Inhibitors (ChEIs) used in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) have modest effects, heterogeneous treatment response, and it has been difficult to detect treatment response. The standard research and clinical outcome measure, the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) aggregates multiple cognitive domains, and has limited sensitivity. We propose that because acetylcholine is directly linked to the cognitive domain of attention, and ChEIs increase available acetylcholine, measures of attention under high-load conditions could predict long-term cognitive, functional and behavioral response, and thus, unlike global measures, could be sensitive to treatment efficacy.

Method: We conducted a longitudinal, open label donepezil trial …

Visual Hallucinations And Paranoid Delusions, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Kathleen Whalen, J. Culp

Amber E. Kinser

Visual well-formed hallucinations, fluctuations in the level of cognition, and alertness and extrapyramidal signs are core features of dementia with Lewy bodies. Some patients realize that what they are seeing or hearing are just hallucinations and learn to accept them. Others, however experience these hallucinations as quite real and cannot be dissuaded from the firm belief that they are. In fact, efforts to dissuade them often serve only to confirm the often associated paranoid delusions and this may lead to a catastrophic ending. Hence, it is best not to contradict the patient. Instead, attempts should be made to distract the …

Driving And Patients With Dementia, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, K. Whalen, J. Culp

Amber E. Kinser

Driving is a symbol of autonomy and independence, eagerly awaited during adolescence, cherished during adulthood and reluctantly rescinded during old age. It is nevertheless an individual’s privilege, not right, especially as driving may affect other drivers and pedestrians on the road. It is therefore not only the individual patient who is at stake but essentially the entire community. In this case scenario, we describe the situation that arose when a patient with multi-infarct dementia wanted to go for a drive and his son and grandson tried to convince him that he could no longer drive. What went wrong in the …

Patients With Dementia Are Easily Distracted, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Audrey Depelteau, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, J. V. Lewis, Kathleen Whalen

Amber E. Kinser

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is the middle ground between normal, age-appropriate memory impairment, and dementia. Whereas patients with MCI are able to cope with the memory deficit, those with dementia are not: Their memory impairment and other cognitive deficits are of sufficient magnitude to interfere with the patients’ ability to cope independently with daily activities. In both MCI and dementia, there is evidence of declining cognitive functions from a previously higher level of functioning. In both the conditions, there is also an evidence of dysfunction in one or more cognitive domains. There are two subtypes of MCI depending on whether …

Fronto-Temporal Dementia, Diabetes Mellitus And Excessive Eating, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Kara Dickerson, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Kathleen Whalen

Amber E. Kinser

Diabetes mellitus is common among older people. Hypoglycemia is a sign of poorly controlled diabetes mellitus and may lead to irritability, agitation, anxiety, hunger, and an excessive food intake, which in turn may make the control of diabetes more difficult. Excessive, inappropriate food intake is also a sign of Fronto-Temporal Dementia (behavioral variant: bvFTD). In this case study, we describe the events leading to an altercation that developed between an older diabetic patient with bvFTD and the staff in an Assisted Living Facility. His first dose of insulin was given early that morning while he was still asleep. He, subsequently, …

Impulsive, Disinhibited Behavior—Dining In A Restaurant, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Kathleen Whalen

Amber E. Kinser

Dining in a restaurant with a loved one who has dementia can be an ordeal, especially if the expectations of the caregiver do not match those of the patient and the restaurant environment is not suitable for patients with dementia. The size of the dining area, lighting, background music or noise, décor of the room, number of customers, variety of the items on the menu, number of plates and cutlery on the table, in addition to flowers, candles, and other decorations on the table are all potent distractors. There are so many stimuli; the patient can be overwhelmed with information …

Insomnia And Mild Cognitive Impairment, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Kara Dickerson, C Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Kathleen Whalen

Amber E. Kinser

Insomnia is a common problem in older people, especially in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) whose circadian rhythm is often compromised. Insomnia exerts such a toll on caregivers that it is frequently the primary reason for seeking to institutionalize their loved ones. Three different types of insomnia are recognized: sleep-onset or initial insomnia, sleep maintenance or middle insomnia, and early morning awakening or late insomnia. Nocturnal hypoglycemia, as a cause of middle insomnia, is the main focus of this case study. Other types of insomnia are also briefly reviewed. The management of insomnia is then discussed including sleep hygiene, …

Agnosia Interferes With Daily Hygiene In Patients With Dementia, Ronald C. Hamdy, Amber Kinser, Jennifer E. Culp, Tracey Kendall-Wilson, Audrey Depelteau, Rebecca Copeland, Kathleen Whalen

Amber E. Kinser

Patients with dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s disease, may not recognize that their clothes are dirty. They may see the food stains and discoloration of the clothes and yet because of their agnosia are unable to integrate these observations and deduce that their clothes are dirty and need to be changed. They will, therefore, resist attempts to get them to change clothes, especially if these clothes happen to be their favorite ones. This often causes caregivers to become frustrated, especially, if it represents a change in the patient’s previous habits of only wearing clean clothes. In this case study, we present a …

Comparison Of Motor Skill Learning, Grip Strength And Memory Recall On Land And In Chest-Deep Water, Eadric Bressel, Michiel N. Vakula, Youngwook Kim, David A.E. Bolton, Chris J. Dakin

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Immersion in chest-deep water may augment explicit memory in healthy adults however, there is limited information on how this environment might affect implicit memory or motor learning. The purpose of this study was to compare the speed and accuracy for learning a motor skill on land and in chest-deep water. Verbal word recall and grip strength were included to gain a more complete understanding of the intervention. Sixty-two younger adults (age = 23.3 ± 3.59 yrs.) were randomly assigned to either a water group immersed to the xiphoid or a land group. Participants in both groups completed the same eight …

Effects Of Natural Antioxidants On Motor And Cognitive Deficits In An Animal Model Of Aging And Obesity And Dopaminergic-Like Sh-Sy5y Cell Line, Sneha Potdar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aging is a universal phenomenon. One of the greatest challenges faced by the elderly population is to sustain a healthy standard of living. Advancing age is associated with increased motor and cognitive deficits. Loss of balance, falls, hip fractures, and poor memory all contribute to a decline in the quality of life of the aging population. While ongoing research is making advances to find therapeutic interventions for neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, there is a pressing need to address deficits associated with normal aging.

Increase in oxidative stress and a decline of antioxidant mechanisms with aging have been …

Differential Diagnosis Of Auditory Processing Disorder In Children: A Literature Review, Jessica Glennon, Benjamin Kirby

AuD Capstone Projects - Communication Sciences and Disorders

Although there is no consensus on the definition of auditory processing disorder (APD), it is typically characterized by listening difficulties resulting from deficits in auditory perceptual processing of sounds in the central auditory nervous system. APD often co-occurs with other disabilities such as ADHD, dyslexia, and specific language impairment. Presenting symptoms can be very similar to these other disorder, complicating diagnosis. Due to the overlap of symptoms between APD and various other deficits, there are concerns that professionals in different fields are providing children with different labels for the same group of symptoms. Therefore, the aim of this literature review …

A Mixed Methods Study Exploring The Relationship Of Cognitive And Motivational Factors To Sonography Student Performance, Renee Hathaway

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine relationships between sonography students’ levels of self-regulation and self-efficacy and their performance in a 16-week introductory vascular sonography skills laboratory course. Measures for the study were designed to yield qualitative and quantitative data related to student goals, strategies, and course performance, and were generated by both students and faculty. Qualitative data from the study included student self-reports of self-regulatory strategies and instructor evaluations of student performance, while quantitative data were provided by instructor and student ratings of performance, student self-efficacy ratings, and student reports on their use of deliberate practice. …

Gene-Environment Interaction: Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (Bdnf) As A Moderating Factor For The Effects Of Exercise And Diet On Cognitive And Mental Health: The Cache County Study On Memory In Aging, Chelsea L. Sanders

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Cache County Study on Memory in Aging, funded by the National Institute on Aging, studied longitudinal changes in memory and aging over 12 years’ follow-up in a population-based sample of 5,092 older adults in semirural Cache County, UT. Among the extensive interview procedures, researchers collected information regarding the participants’ demographics, health, genetic factors, diet, physical activity, and cognitive abilities. This study has allowed researchers to investigate how genetic and modifiable lifestyle factors interact to predict health, cognitive function, and psychological wellbeing in older adults.

Diet and exercise are important lifestyle factors in maintaining cognitive health and psychological wellbeing throughout …

The Effects Of Consuming Eggs On The Physical And Cognitive Development Of Food-Insecure Haitian Children, Monica Elaine Stewart

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Within Latin America and the Caribbean, severe food insecurity is highest in Haiti. Fifty-five percent of the population lives below the poverty line with approximately 50% of the population undernourished. Given the typical diet in the developing world is primarily plant-based, the two studies presented in this thesis examine how eggs, a locally available animal protein, impact physical growth, cognitive development, and motor skills of food-insecure children from a single orphanage in Leogane, Haiti when added to the diet.

In the first study, growth parameters in children ages 3-8 years old were measured at baseline, six months, and one year. …

Associations Between Physical Frailty And Cognitive Functioning Using Factor Analysis, Ni Sun-Suslow

Open Access Dissertations

While there are several proposed definitions, Fried et al. (2001) is the first study to define the physical characteristics of frailty. To date there have been few attempts to validate this criterion. Further, there is a long-standing and growing interest in the relationship between frailty and cognitive impairment. Few studies have investigated this relationship using an unmodified Fried criterion and cognitive measures beyond a mental status screener. We first examined whether the physical indicators of Fried phenotype cluster together to describe frailty syndrome using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and we further explored the association between frailty as a latent variable …

Fasudil In Combination With Bone Marrow Stromal Cells (Bmscs) Attenuates Alzheimer's Disease-Related Changes Through The Regulation Of The Peripheral Immune System., Jiezhong Yu, Yuqing Yan, Qingfang Gu, Gajendra Kumar, Hongqiang Yu, Yijin Zhao, Chunyun Liu, Ye Gao, Zhi Chai, Jasleen Chumber, Bao-Guo Xiao, Guang-Xian Zhang, Han-Ting Zhang, Yuqiang Jiang, Cun-Gen Ma

Department of Neurology Faculty Papers

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic progressive neurodegenerative disease. Its mechanism is still not clear. Majority of research focused on the central nervous system (CNS) changes, while few studies emphasize on peripheral immune system modulation. Our study aimed to investigate the regulation of the peripheral immune system and its relationship to the severity of the disease after treatment in an AD model of APPswe/PSEN1dE9 transgenic (APP/PS1 Tg) mice. APP/PS1 Tg mice (8 months old) were treated with the ROCK-II inhibitor 1-(5-isoquinolinesulfonyl)-homo-piperazine (Fasudil) (intraperitoneal (i.p.) injections, 25 mg/kg/day), bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs; caudal vein injections, 1 × 10

Just Don't Do It!: A Comparison Of Strategies For Reducing Commission Errors In Older And Younger Adults, Emily Streeper

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Prospective memory (PM) commission errors occur when an individual erroneously repeats an intention that is finished and therefore no longer relevant (e.g., accidentally taking a medication one no longer needs to take). Commission errors have been observed in younger and older adults with age exacerbating commission error risk in select conditions. Only one prior study has used the finished paradigm to investigate the use of explicit strategies to reduce commission error rates in older adults. Bugg, Scullin, and Rauvola (2016) found that forgetting practice, an experience-based strategy, minimized commission errors to floor levels but a preparation-based strategy was ineffective. The …