Aligning Developmental and Processing Accounts of Implicit and Statistical Learning

A long‐standing question in child language research concerns how children achieve mature syntactic knowledge in the face of a complex linguistic environment. A widely accepted view is that this process involves extracting distributional regularities from the environment in a manner that is incidental and happens, for the most part, without the learner's awareness. In this way, the debate speaks to two associated but separate literatures in language acquisition: statistical learning and implicit learning. Both fields have explored this issue in some depth but, at present, neither the results from the infant studies used by the statistical learning literature nor the artificial grammar learning tasks studies from the implicit learning literature can be used to fully explain how children's syntax becomes adult‐like. In this work, we consider an alternative explanation—that children use error‐based learning to become mature syntax users. We discuss this proposal in the light of the behavioral findings from structural priming studies and the computational findings from Chang, Dell, and Bock's (2006) dual‐path model, which incorporates properties from both statistical and implicit learning, and offers an explanation for syntax learning and structural priming using a common error‐based learning mechanism. We then turn our attention to future directions for the field, here suggesting how structural priming might inform the statistical learning and implicit learning literature on the nature of the learning mechanism.     

Prolonged EEGs in adult patients with a first unprovoked seizure: a prospective pilot study

Aims. Definitions of epilepsy have changed to include a first unprovoked seizure with a high (>60%) risk of recurrence in the next 10 years. A single seizure and an epileptiform discharge on an EEG would suffice for this diagnosis. We hypothesized that an extended six‐hour EEG in adult patients presenting with a first unprovoked seizure would demonstrate an increased yield of epileptiform discharges in comparison to a standard 30‐minute EEG, and therefore higher rates of epilepsy diagnosis. Methods. Thirty‐eight patients were recruited at Hamilton Health Sciences over six years and 36 underwent extended six‐hour EEGs. Results. Two of seven patients demonstrated epileptiform discharges on their EEG after only the first 30 minutes of recording, observed during sleep for both patients. This correlated to an overall increase of 5.56%, or a yield of 29%. Conclusion. A third more patients could benefit from early diagnosis with extended EEGs. The rate of epilepsy diagnosis based on EEG overall was superior to that of brain imaging (19% versus 6%). Given the limitations due to sample size in this study, a larger trial would be beneficial to confirm these findings.     

Anxiety profiles in children with and without developmental coordination disorder

Previous work has highlighted that children diagnosed with DCD may be at risk of greater problems related to emotional wellbeing. However, to date much work has relied on population based samples, and anxiety has not been examined within a group of children given a clinical diagnosis of DCD. Additionally, the profile of individual differences has generally not been considered within this group. Therefore, a group of parents (n = 27) completed the parent version of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS-P; Spence, 1998) in relation to their children with a diagnosis of DCD. Their responses on this measure were compared to those of parents with typically developing (TD) children (n = 35; both groups 6-15 years of age). Children diagnosed with DCD were reported to experience significantly greater levels of anxiety overall, as well as having significantly greater difficulty than the TD group in the domains of panic/agoraphobic anxiety, social phobia, and obsessive compulsive anxiety. In addition, the individual profiles of types of anxiety reportedly experienced varied widely across the DCD group. These findings suggest that anxiety is a major problem for a proportion of children diagnosed with DCD, and raises questions regarding intervention, long term outcomes, and the nature of the disorder itself.     

Recommendations for Responsible Development and Application of Neurotechnologies

Advancements in novel neurotechnologies, such as brain computer interfaces (BCI) and neuromodulatory devices such as deep brain stimulators (DBS), will have profound implications for society and human rights. While these technologies are improving the diagnosis and treatment of mental and neurological diseases, they can also alter individual agency and estrange those using neurotechnologies from their sense of self, challenging basic notions of what it means to be human. As an international coalition of interdisciplinary scholars and practitioners, we examine these challenges and make recommendations to mitigate negative consequences that could arise from the unregulated development or application of novel neurotechnologies. We explore potential ethical challenges in four key areas: identity and agency, privacy, bias, and enhancement. To address them, we propose (1) democratic and inclusive summits to establish globally-coordinated ethical and societal guidelines for neurotechnology development and application, (2) new measures, including “Neurorights,” for data privacy, security, and consent to empower neurotechnology users’ control over their data, (3) new methods of identifying and preventing bias, and (4) the adoption of public guidelines for safe and equitable distribution of neurotechnological devices.

     

Depression or resilience? A participatory study to identify an appropriate assessment tool with Kanien’kéha (Mohawk) and Inuit in Quebec

Purpose

We present a study on selection of a psychometric scale to be clinically used among Indigenous people with depression. Our aim was to select a psychometric tool for cultural adaptation with Mohawk and Inuit in Quebec.

Methods

We selected three depression scales and three protective factor scales based on: strong validity for psychometric properties, evidence for good psychometric qualities across translations, avoidance of cognitively complex sentences, brevity, and clarity. We submitted the scales for consultation, and followed qualitative participatory methods with Mohawks of Kahnawake and Inuit from Nunavik living in an urban environment. We collected data through ten focus groups with advisory committees, and carried out a thematic analysis of the information.

Results

The advisory groups considered the measurement scales to be unsafe. The major components that hindered their acceptance were: numeric rating, self-evaluation (versus supportive interaction), and a focus on symptoms rather than supportive factors. The participants preferred the Growth and Empowerment Measure due to its empowering approach. They voiced that it is necessary to develop a culturally sensitive and safe tool which facilitates interactions between the person and the practitioner.

Conclusion

This project provides valuable information about the perspectives of local Indigenous peoples regarding mental health and factors of empowerment and resilience. The ideal tool should be flexible in terms of the content and its use as compared to the conventional psychometric strategies. A tool developed with the Indigenous perspective on wellbeing could be used in psychological and psychiatric intervention as well as in social and community services.

     

The AAGP Scholars Program: Predictors of Pursuing Geriatric Psychiatry Fellowship Training

ObjectiveThe American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) Scholars Program was developed to recruit trainees into geriatric psychiatry fellowships and is considered a pipeline for fellowship recruitment. Nonetheless, the number of trainees entering geriatric psychiatry fellowship is declining, making it important to identify modifiable factors that may influence trainees’ decisions to pursue fellowship. We analyzed survey data from Scholars Program participants to identify demographic characteristics, attitudes toward program components, and behaviors after the program that were independently associated with the decision to pursue fellowship.MethodsWeb-based surveys were distributed to all 289 former Scholars participants (2010–2018), whether or not they had completed geriatric psychiatry fellowships. We conducted a hierarchical binary logistic regression analysis to examine demographics, program components, and behaviors after the program associated with deciding to pursue geriatric psychiatry fellowship.ResultsSixty-one percent of Scholars decided to pursue geriatric psychiatry fellowship. Attending more than one AAGP annual meeting (relative variance explained [RVE] = 34.2%), maintaining membership in the AAGP (RVE = 28.2%), and rating the Scholars Program as important for meeting potential collaborators (RVE = 26.6%) explained the vast majority of variance in the decision to pursue geriatric psychiatry fellowship.ConclusionNearly two-thirds of Scholars Program participants decided to pursue geriatric psychiatry fellowship, suggesting the existing program is an effective fellowship recruitment pipeline. Moreover, greater involvement in the AAGP longitudinally may positively influence Scholars to pursue fellowship. Creative approaches that encourage Scholars to develop collaborations, maintain AAGP membership, and regularly attend AAGP annual meetings may help attract more trainees into geriatric psychiatry.     

Intellectual Ability,Self-perceived Social Competence,and Depressive Symptomatology in Children with High-functioning Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Although social competence deficits in children with high-functioning autistic spectrum disorders (HFASD) are well documented, there is little research investigating self-perceptions of social limitations. This study replicated research showing a negative association between self-perceived social competence and intellectual ability and investigated associations between self-perceived social competence and depressive symptomatology. Participants were 22 children with HFASD, aged 7–13 years with intelligence quotient (IQ) scores of 82–141. Parent- (N = 18) and teacher- (N = 17) rated social competence was lower for children with HFASD compared with a normative sample. Higher age and IQ predicted lower levels of self-perceived social competence, and low self-perceived social competence predicted higher levels of depressive symptomatology. Almost a third of children rated themselves for depression; parent ratings suggested even higher levels.

Failure of frontolimbic inhibitory function in the context of negative emotion in borderline personality disorder

OBJECTIVE: The authors sought to test the hypothesis that in patients with borderline personality disorder, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and associated regions would not be activated during a task requiring motor inhibition in the setting of negative emotion. Such a finding would provide a plausible neural basis for the difficulty borderline patients have in modulating their behavior during negative emotional states and a potential marker for treatment interventions. METHOD: A specifically designed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) activation probe was used, with statistical parametric mapping analyses, to test hypotheses concerning decreased prefrontal inhibitory function in the context of negative emotion in patients with borderline personality disorder (N=16) and healthy comparison subjects (N=14). 3-T fMRI scanning was used to study brain activity while participants performed an emotional linguistic go/no-go task. RESULTS: Analyses confirmed that under conditions associated with the interaction of behavioral inhibition and negative emotion, borderline patients showed relatively decreased ventromedial prefrontal activity (including medial orbitofrontal and subgenual anterior cingulate) compared with healthy subjects. In borderline patients, under conditions of behavioral inhibition in the context of negative emotion, decreasing ventromedial prefrontal and increasing extended amygdalar-ventral striatal activity correlated highly with measures of decreased constraint and increased negative emotion, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest specific frontolimbic neural substrates associated with core clinical features of emotional and behavioral dyscontrol in borderline personality disorder.     

False memories in patients with mild cognitive impairment and mild Alzheimer’s disease dementia: Can cognitive strategies help?

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that presents predominantly with impairments in learning and memory. Patients with AD are also susceptible to false memories, a clinically relevant memory distortion where a patient remembers an incorrect memory that they believe to be true. The use of cognitive strategies to improve memory performance among patients with AD by reducing false memories has taken on added importance given the lack of disease-modifying agents for AD. However, existing evidence suggests that cognitive strategies to reduce false memories in patients with AD are of limited effectiveness, although these strategies may be useful at earlier stages of the disease. The purpose of this review is to examine experimental findings of false memories and associated memory processes in patients with mild cognitive impairment due to AD and mild AD dementia. Cognitive strategies to reduce false memories in these patient populations are also reviewed. Approaches to clinically relevant future research are suggested and discussed.