The nature of persisting spreading activation from list presentation in eliciting false recognition in the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm was examined in two experiments. We compared the time course of semantic priming in the lexical decision task (LDT) and false alarms in speeded recognition under identical study and test conditions. The…

It has been proposed that it is possible to decompose changes in variability of human motor behavior into 3 independent components: covariation, task tolerance, and stochastic noise. The authors simulate learning to throw accurately and show that for this task the proposed analysis does not give an unambiguous answer to the question of what the 3…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether lexical access in adults who stutter (AWS) differs from that in people who do not stutter. Specifically, the authors examined the role of 3 lexical factors on naming speed, accuracy, and fluency: word frequency, neighborhood density, and neighborhood frequency. If stuttering results…

The ability of individuals with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) to infer mental states from dynamic and static facial stimuli was investigated. In Experiment 1, individuals with ASD (10- to 14-year olds; N = 18) performed above chance but not as well as controls. Accuracy scores for mental states did not differ between dynamic and static faces.…

People with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) have difficulties in recalling recently experienced events, which is dependent upon intact functioning of several aspects of "self awareness". The current study examined impaired episodic recall in ASD and its relationship to specific impairments in aspects of "self awareness". Between-group…

Both emotional reactivity and categorization have long been studied within the framework of hemispheric asymmetry. However, little attempt has been made to integrate both research areas using any form of neuropsychological research, despite behavioral data suggesting a consistent relationship between affective and categorization processes. The…

A comprehensive understanding of the basic visual and cognitive abilities of individuals with mental retardation is critical for understanding the basis of mental retardation and for the design of remediation programs. We assessed visual search abilities in individuals with mild mental retardation and in MA- and CA-matched comparison groups. Our…

Direct instruction (DI), a predetermined and systematic approach to the teaching/learning process, is advocated for teaching precise responses in the most efficient way to preschool handicapped students. Planning for DI includes specifying task sequences leading to a terminal behavior. Specific steps are followed in the presentation and curriculum…

A discussion of the use of task analysis as a method of determining the need for training. (Author/HB)

This two-part paper offers some guidelines for training in observation skills. Part one describes nine guidelines for observers. Part two delineates 10 tasks in observing and identifies ways of accomplishing them. Tasks include identifying goals of the learning task; gaining evidence of teacher's planning; determining student motivation level;…

This paper presents an analysis of the task characteristics of various academic areas. Multidimensional scaling was performed at the University of Illinois on 168 scholars' judgments about the similarities among 36 academic task areas, and 54 scholars at a small western college judged similarities among 30 areas. The method used in the study was…

The authors review the rationale for task analysis, discuss five guidelines for using task analysis with handicapped children, and describe six methods (such as brainstorming watching someone perform the task, and working backward from the terminal objective) for its application. (CL)

Depending on the type of behavior one wants to measure, competency tests are either written or performance oriented. Information and cognitive processing are best measured by written demonstrations of the knowledge. Skills ability is best measured by performance testing. (Author/JOW)

The author reviews the research on quality of tasks set by 35 secondary teachers for their pupils and notes that the majority of tasks fell into the category of low cognitive demand. Preliminary results from a second study point out the importance of seeing task-setting as a critical teaching skill. (CL)

Action research is an umbrella term referring to research by practitioners for the purpose of improving their practice. Action research in higher education is being conducted by a growing number of practitioners whose formal training is outside of the discipline of education research. This has precipitated a need for faculty development and…