Evidence of systematic misreading has been taken to argue that language processing is noisy, and that readers take noise into consideration and therefore sometimes interpret sentences non-literally (rational inference over a noisy channel). The present study investigates one specific misreading phenomenon: failure to notice word transpositions in a sentence. While this phenomenon can be explained by rational inference, it also has been argued to arise due to parallel lexical processing. The study explored these two accounts. Visual, lexical, and syntactic properties of the two transposed words were manipulated in three experiments. Failure to notice the transposition was more likely when both words were short, and when readers' eyes skipped, rather than directly fixated, one of the two words. Failure to notice the transposition also occurred when one word was long. The position of ungrammaticality elicited by transposition (the first vs. second transposed word) influenced tendency to miss the error; the direction of the effect, however, depended on word classes of the transposed words. Failure of detection was not more likely when the second transposed word was easier to recognize than the first transposed word. Finally, readers’ eye movements on the transposed words revealed no disruption in those trials when they ultimately accepted the sentence to be grammatical. We consider the findings to be only partially supportive of parallel lexical processing and instead propose that word recognition is serial, but integration is not perfectly incremental, and that rational inference may take place before an ungrammatical representation is constructed.

The somatic marker hypothesis posits that physiological arousal is partially responsible for decision-making behavior. Arousal, measured by skin conductance responses (SCR), increases before deck choice in the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). These markers co-vary with performance -- pathological gamblers lack these markers and perform poorly. Personality also modulates IGT behavior – high-novelty-seeking (NS) individuals tend to perform worse. In the IGT, participants decide which deck to select, creating a potential confound between personality, performance, and arousal. For example, high-NS individuals select the bad decks more often, potentially causing habituation and a muted SCR. The first goal of this research was to replicate the finding that personality modulates arousal in a task which removes these confounds. Participants selected a series of cards from two decks. Each card was either a win or loss. Real money was used. To remove the potential confound between choice and outcome, all participants experienced the same outcomes regardless of choice. SCR was measured during the task. Personality characteristics previously shown to modulate gambling behavior, such as sensation seeking (SS), were measured. Arousal may also occur during other phases of gambling, for example, before or after the outcome is revealed. To date, few studies have examined the relationship between arousal in these different phases. The second goal was to determine this relationship. The phases of gambling (pre-choice, anticipation, and outcome) were temporally separated to allow for precise SCR measurement in each phase. The final goal was to determine the relationship between perceived control and physiological arousal. An 'illusion of control', e.g., pulling the lever on a slot machine, promotes gambling, especially in pathological gamblers. Little work has addressed the relationship between personality, control, and arousal. In different sessions, participants either selected the next card or the next card was selected for them. SS decreased arousal during all three gambling phases. The perception of control decreased arousal during the pre-choice phase only. This latter effect was strongest for low-SS individuals. The ramifications of this study are clear: identifying how physiological responses vary with personality opens up avenues for potential treatment of problem gambling.

The current dismounted soldier and the soldier of the future will be "loaded" with more information processing tasks while they perform shooting tasks. It is conceivable that some increased level of cognitive tasking may be performed simultaneously with required shooting tasks. The effect of cognitive load on shooting performance has been previously examined (Scribner and Harper, 2001). This study concentrated on the effect of various cognitive workload demands on a friend-foe discrimination shooting task in a single- and dual-task scenario. In light of this, it is imperative that the soldier not be overburdened mentally, which may result in decreased survivability and lethality. Specifically, this study was designed to examine the ability of the soldier to perform friend-foe target discrimination and shooting accuracy, with varying target exposure times, friendly target signatures, and varying cognitive load demands (working memory recall task). Using the Small Arms Simulator Testbed (SAST) we examined the effects of manipulations of working memory load and sustained information transfer, on shooting performance (as measured by target acquisition and friend/foe discrimination indices). Additionally, we investigated subjective measures of workload and stress. A secondary task, administered aurally, was given to subjects to attend to while they performed shooting (friend/foe discrimination task) scenarios: working memory recall task. Each type of task consisted of three levels of difficulty. Analysis of variance revealed significant differences for the memory recall task during shooting and non-shooting conditions. Furthermore, results showed that workload increased as a function of task demand, with associated decreases in shooting performance.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this research was to examine the clinical utility of the digital Clock in the Box (dCIB), a novel digitized cognitive screening test. This was accomplished by (1) creating cutoff scores for the dCIB, (2) evaluating performance on the dCIB relative to established cognitive screening and standardized neuropsychological measures, and (3) determining the efficacy of the dCIB to screen for subtle cognitive deficits associated with poor vascular health. Metabolic Syndrome (MetS; clinical syndrome of three or more cardiovascular risk factors) is a rising health epidemic associated with an increased risk for cerebrovascular disease and vascular dementia. Early detection of subtle deficits associated with MetS may assist in regulation of disease progression and prevention of future vascular dementia. METHODS: A community-based sample of adults with no self-reported history of cognitive impairment was recruited for a cross-sectional study in which they completed a metabolic assessment, blood draw, and a brief neuropsychological battery consisting of the dCIB, the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE), and measures of executive function, memory, and attention. For part of the analysis, participants were separated into MetS (n=21) and non-MetS (n=42) groups based on current diagnostic criteria for MetS. RESULTS: Participants (N=63) were older (62.49 ± 9.16 years), educated (16.46 ± 2.76 years), and diverse with 44.4% female (n=28) and 28.6% non-White (n=18). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and Youden’s J statistic determined the optimal cutoff value for the dCIB as 5.5 (dCIB score ≤ 6 indicating suspected impairment; dCIB score ≤ 5 indicating probable impairment). Performance on the dCIB (6.32 ± 2.32) was significantly correlated with the MMSE (28.19 ± 2.06); (Pearson’s r = 0.437, p = 0.000). The dCIB had better sensitivity (72.7%) but poorer specificity (65.4%) compared to the MMSE (sensitivity 45.5%; specificity 94.2%). Using regression modeling, the dCIB significantly predicted performance on measures of executive function, memory, and attention. In a sample stratified by vascular risk, the dCIB successfully differentiated MetS (5.33 ± 2.75) and non-MetS (6.81 ± 1.93) groups, with lower dCIB scores in the MetS group relative to the non-MetS group (F = 8.975, p = 0.004). CONCLUSION: The dCIB is a novel digitized clock drawing task designed to screen for cognitive impairment. Clinical utility for the dCIB was established by determining its test validity and demonstrating its sensitivity to detect subtle cognitive deficits in a sample with vascular risk. Because the dCIB is simple to administer and brief to complete, it may be an ideal option for routine cognitive screening in primary care settings.

As the popularity of video games increases, a growing literature has begun to examine the association of video game play with cognitive processes. An advantage in cognitive control ability for video game players (VGPs) compared to nongamers (nVGPs) has been suggested by a number of recent studies. Miyake et al. (2000) identify three separable components of cognitive control: ability to shift mental set, updating and monitoring of working memory, and ability to inhibit automatic responses. In three sets of experiments, we investigated claims of a benefit in cognitive control for VGPs compared to nVGPs. Chapter 2 used two task switching paradigms to examine the ability to shift mental set, finding no difference in cognitive control between VGPs and nVGPs when baseline differences in response speed were accounted for. In Chapter 3, a series of nback experiments to investigate working memory demonstrated that VGPs display an advantage in spatial processing, but not in cognitive control. Chapter 4 assessed group differences using three measures of inhibitory control: flanker, Stroop, and go no-go tasks. The results of these experiments suggest that VGPs may rely more on automaticitybased response strategies than do nVGPs, but no group differences in cognitive control were evident. Overall, the results of this dissertation dispute a growing literature that assumes a cognitive control benefit for VGPs compared to nVGPs. Although VGPs reliably show faster performance on a range of tasks used to assess cognitive control (e.g., task switching paradigms), when examined with careful methods, these observed differences in performance are not attributable to differences in cognitive control ability. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Many people enjoy playing video games, and it is important to understand whether playing these games is associated with differences in the way we think, or our ability to complete tasks. Previous studies have claimed that playing video games is associated with increased control over our ability to selectively respond to our environment. This dissertation uses a series of experiments to compare the cognitive control ability of video game players (VGPs), and people who do not play video games (nVGPs). We tested their ability to switch between different tasks, to hold items in memory, and to withhold responses. Results of these experiments suggest that although VGPs may generally respond faster and process spatial information better than nVGPs, there are no differences in cognitive control between VGPs and nVGPs.

A neuropsychological examination is often used in tandem with other measures to confirm the diagnosis of idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (iNPH) and to assess improvement in cognitive functioning after a lumbar puncture test. Improvement in symptoms is thought to predict benefit from installation of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt that redirects CSF from the brain. Although the 72-hour external lumbar drain (ELD) has long been the gold-standard drainage procedure, hospitals are increasingly opting for the high-volume lumbar puncture, during which 50ml of CSF is released over an hour before the patient is tested for improvement in symptoms. The primary aims of this study were to evaluate the changes in cognitive performance produced by the two LP procedures and to compare the results produced by each procedure. In a review of medical records, 40 patients met criteria for inclusion. Cognitive functioning in the 72-hour ELD (n = 10) group was compared to changes in patients in the HVLP group, in terms of baseline level of functioning and post-drain changes. Statistical methods used to determine change included ANOVA and Reliable Change Indices. Dominant-hand Grooved Pegboard Test showed significant change after lumbar puncture, with higher mean change in the 72-hour ELD group. 72-hour ELD patients had a slightly higher rate of Reliable Change than HVLP patients. Cognitive changes were bi-directional in both groups. Results suggest that changes in cognitive functioning after lumbar puncture occur in a minority of patients, regardless of procedure type, and may have low predictive value for VPS benefit.

Although the cerebellum has been traditionally thought of as a motor processing brain region, recent evidence suggests that the cerebellum is functionally diverse. The posterior cerebellum in particular has been shown to play a role in social cognitive processes, and recent work has proposed that this region helps fine tune mental models of social cognition to, for example, to ensure accurate selection of actions in a social scenario. Social interactions with strangers are difficult, in part because we are constantly trying to gauge whether the other person likes or dislikes us without much information for our mental models to help us. From a reward processing standpoint, this requires tracking the value (positive or negative) of people’s valence to us and ensuring that our predictions about people’s affect towards us are correct. The aim of this project was to specify how the posterior cerebellum uniquely contributes to social reward processing, and to distinguish this contribution from regions that are canonically part of the reward and social brain regions. Participants, ages 12-36, completed a well-matched social and monetary reward task in the scanner. In the monetary condition, participants were asked to select which of two doors would result in winning money, and in other trials losing money. In the social condition, participants were asked to select which of two faces representing people would like or dislike them. Representational similarity analysis was used to compare the responses of reward and social brain regions to conditions in which participants either won or lost money and were either liked or disliked by others. We found that portions of the posterior cerebellum were sensitive to social reward, and treated positive social rewards more similarly to negative social rewards than the striatum. These results suggest that these regions in the posterior cerebellum has a dissociable contribution to social reward processing compared to other brain regions. / Psychology

In modern-day psycholinguistics, there is a rising interest in looking at bilingualism from a holistic perspective. Yet, only a few are the methods employed as efficient and comprehensive of all the variables and factors that affect language acquisition and the motivation for someone to seek to acquire another language. Historically, research has also recognized the extreme value of bilingualism at a neurological level (we know that it offers protection against neurodegeneration and increased grey matter presence in some brain regions, aiding in cognitive performance overall). However, we ignore the full extent of the mechanisms that aid this complex process and the trajectory the speaker takes from initial exposure to another language to becoming competent. Vocal biomarkers are a currently emerging topic in behavioral research due to their potential uses in the early detection of psychopathology and neurodegeneration, potentially by just recording a person's voice and relying on an app to analyze and provide a report. We created a comprehensive battery to measure bilingualism, including surveys and a vocal assessment, considering specific vocal patterns (jitteriness, sustentation, and others). Participants took a modified version of a golden reference test for bilingualism research, the Bilingual Language Profile, to which we added a technology usage question and a cultural influences section. We then collected voice samples from them, completing three tasks.

Many U.S. students possess only a weak knowledge of fraction arithmetic. I hypothesize that textbooks are a critical reason for students’ poor performance on fraction arithmetic. This is not because of what textbooks contain but rather because of what they lack. Distributions of fraction arithmetic problems in textbooks are imbalanced, with certain types of problems almost never presented (Braithwaite et al., 2017). As a result, students often err when they attempt to solve those rare types of problems (Siegler & Pyke, 2013). Two experiments, a pilot study (n = 40 students in grades 5 through 7) and a larger study (n = 127 students in grades 6 and 7), were conducted. These experiments utilized a pretest-intervention-posttest design to empirically test the benefits of providing either a complement of the typical textbook distribution of problems (hyperbalanced practice) or an equal distribution of problems (balanced practice) compared to the benefits of providing a practice set that followed the typical distribution found in math textbooks. A MANCOVA and follow-up ANCOVAs revealed significant differences between students in the textbook condition and students in the balanced and hyperbalanced conditions.For items involving adding fractions with unequal denominators, students who received typical textbook practice showed greater improvement and made fewer strategy errors than students who received hyperbalanced practice. For items involving multiplying two fractions with equal denominators, the opposite was true. Students who received hyperbalanced practice showed greater improvement and made fewer strategy errors than students who received typical textbook practice on items involving multiplying two fractions with equal denominators. Finally, students who received fully balanced practice showed greater improvement and made fewer strategy errors than students who received typical textbook practice on problems involving multiplying one whole number and one fraction. This last finding was of particular interest since none of the practice conditions included practice with that item type. The results of this study demonstrate that even a brief intervention in which students received extra practice with rare item types could improve performance. It also showed that gains in one type of item often resulted in decrements in others, which must be considered when making recommendations to textbook publishers and educators. In sum, this dissertation seeks to make a scholarly contribution to the field by discussing the role that textbooks play in student performance and by analyzing the benefits of supplementing typical textbook instruction with differently balanced fraction arithmetic practice.

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