Current research suggests a role for biomedical knowledge in learning and retaining concepts related to medical diagnosis. However, learning may be influenced by other, non-biomedical knowledge. We explored this idea using an experimental design and examined the effects of causal knowledge on the learning, retention, and interpretation of medical…

Perceiving someone else's gaze shift toward an object can influence how this object will be manipulated by the observer, suggesting a modulatory effect of a gaze-based social context on action control. High-functioning autism (HFA) is characterized by impairments of social interaction, which may be associated with an inability to automatically…

Relatively little is known about legal entanglements and suicide risk. This matched case-control study estimated the risk of suicide associated with legal strains using online court archives, a novel source of exposure data. Court records linked to suicide deaths (N = 315), controls (N = 630), and unintentional injury and poisoning deaths (N =…

In 3 experiments, undergraduates used their own best method (control) or an "imposed" face-name mnemonic strategy to associate 18 caricatured faces, names, and additional facts. On all immediate tests (prompted by the faces), and on the delayed tests of Experiments 2a and 2b combined, mnemonic students statistically outperformed control students…

It has been claimed that excessively positive self-perceptions of competence are a key risk factor for concurrent and subsequent impairments in youth with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We examined whether girls with ADHD demonstrate positive illusory self-perceptions in scholastic competence, social acceptance, and behavioral…

This study examined the effects of input-based practice on developing accurate and speedy requests in second-language Chinese. Thirty learners from intermediate-level Chinese classes were assigned to an intensive training group (IT), a regular training group (RT), and a control group. The IT and the RT groups practiced using four Chinese…

This paper includes a nontechnical description of methods for calculating effect sizes in intellectual and developmental disability studies. Different hypothetical studies are used to illustrate how null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) and effect size findings can result in quite different outcomes and therefore conflicting results. Whereas…

This study investigated the effects of feedback providing improvement strategies and a reflection assignment on students' writing motivation, process, and performance. Students in the experimental feedback condition (n = 41) received feedback including improvement strategies, whereas students in the control feedback condition (n = 41) received…

Objective: This study was designed to extend the use of a memory training technique, known as the repetition-lag procedure, to Alzheimer patients. The specificity of this procedure is to target the process of recollection for improvement. Method: A group of 12 patients were trained individually for 6 h. The training procedure consisted of a series…

In representation-rich domains such as organic chemistry, students must be facile and accurate when translating between different 2D representations, such as diagrams. We hypothesized that translating between organic chemistry diagrams would be more accurate when concrete models were used because difficult mental processes could be augmented by…

The Ages and Stages Questionnaires (ASQ) are parent-report screening tools to identify infants at risk of developmental difficulties. The purpose of this study was to examine validity and internal reliability of the fine motor developmental area of the ASQ, 2nd edition (ASQ2-FM) for screening 12-month-old infants following major surgery. The…

This study investigated the effects of one session of "Yoga Nidra" (relaxation technique) on the breathing patterns/respiratory effort in the thoracic and abdominal chest regions of boys with disruptive behaviour using a Respiratory Inductive Plethysmography (RIP). The participants (n = 7) were aged 10-15 years and attending NSW, Department of…

Although language difficulties are common in children born prematurely, robust neuroanatomical correlates of these impairments remain to be established. This study investigated whether the greater prevalence of language problems in preterm (versus term-born) children might reflect injury to major intra- or interhemispheric white matter pathways…

This paper reports on the findings of the evaluation of Learning Units (LU), a special type of Learning Object designed to help overcome the difficulties associated with learning Calculus concepts at undergraduate level. An Interactive Platform for Learning Calculus (PIAC) that serves as a container for the LU was created following a specific…

Objective: To compare the phenomenology and course of bereavement-related depression to depression that occurred later in the course of bereavement and to depression in non-bereaved youth. Method: This sample is drawn from a cohort of parentally bereaved youth and non-bereaved controls followed for approximately 5 years. Three groups of depressed…