Effects of gesture restriction on quality of narrative production

Gesture ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 416-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore Jenkins ◽  
Marie Coppola ◽  
Carl Coelho
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Information ◽  
Sentence Production ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Cognitive Effects ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Hand Gestures ◽  
Narrative Production ◽  
Free Gesture

Abstract Hand gestures have been found to provide both semantic information and cognitive facilitative effects in language tasks. These benefits, however, have typically been linked to micro-levels of word and sentence production, and little attention has been paid to the macro-levels of narrative production and organization. In this study, we examined the length, content, syntactic complexity, and organization of narratives of ten typically developing adults under two conditions: (i) Free Gesture, in which participants were allowed to gesture freely while retelling a story, and (ii) Restricted Gesture, where the participants were prevented from moving their hands freely. Results indicated that although narrative length and content did not vary significantly between conditions, narratives produced in the Free Gesture condition were significantly more grammatically complex and better organized than those produced in the Restricted Gesture condition. The findings are discussed with respect to the potential facilitative cognitive effects of gesture for discourse planning.

Mental health correlates and potential childhood predictors for the wish to be of the opposite sex in young autistic adults

Autism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 136236132110240
Author(s):  
Jung-Chi Chang ◽  
Meng-Chuan Lai ◽  
Yueh-Ming Tai ◽  
Susan Shur-Fen Gau
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Item Endorsement ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Autistic Adults

Cross-sectional research has demonstrated the overrepresentation of gender dysphoria in children and adults with autism spectrum disorder. However, the predictors and underlying mechanisms of this co-occurrence remain unclear. This follow-up study aimed to explore baseline (childhood/adolescence) predictors for the follow-up (adulthood) self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex and to investigate its mental health correlates in a sample of 88 autistic individuals as compared with 42 typically developing controls. An item on the Adult Self-Report Inventory-4, “I wish I was the opposite sex,” was used. We compared mental health symptoms between adults with and without this item endorsement. We used prediction models to explore family and autism-related predictors in childhood/adolescence to endorse this item in adulthood. There were more adults endorsing the item in the autism spectrum disorder group compared with the typically developing group. Autistic adults who endorsed the item experienced more mental health challenges, more bullying victimization, more suicidal ideations, and worse quality of life. Lower parent-reported family support and more stereotyped/repetitive behaviors during childhood/adolescence predicted the self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex in adulthood in autistic individuals. It is necessary to raise more attention to gender development and related mental health impact in autistic individuals. Lay abstract Autistic people/people with autism spectrum disorder are more likely to experience gender dysphoria. However, the possible longitudinal predictors and underlying mechanisms of this co-occurrence are unclear. To fill this knowledge gap, we assessed 88 people with autism spectrum disorder and 42 typically developing individuals at their average ages of 13.0 (baseline, childhood/adolescence) and 20.2 years old (follow-up, adulthood). At follow-up, their endorsement on the item “I wish I was the opposite sex” was used to evaluate gender dysphoric symptoms. We compared mental health symptoms between adults with and without this item endorsement at the follow-up assessment. We explored parent-reported family and autism characteristics-related predictors in childhood/adolescence to this item endorsement in adulthood. We found that more autistic adults reported the wish to be of the opposite sex than did typically developing individuals. Autistic adults who endorsed this item experienced more mental health challenges, more school bullying and cyberbullying, more suicidal ideation, and worse quality of life. Moreover, parent-reported lower family support and more stereotyped/repetitive behaviors during childhood/adolescence predicted the self-reported wish to be of the opposite sex in adulthood in autistic individuals. More attention and support should be provided to autistic people regarding gender development and related mental health and quality of life impact, especially during the transition period to young adulthood.

Familiarity of Speaker Accent on Irish Children’s Performance on a Sentence Comprehension Task

2011 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Claire O’Connor ◽  
Fiona E. Gibbon
Keyword(s):  
Sentence Comprehension ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Older Children ◽  
School Aged Children ◽  
Comprehension Task ◽  
Computer Based

Objective: This study sought to determine whether children’s performance on a sentence comprehension task is affected when sentences are spoken in an unfamiliar native accent. Method: Fifty typically developing school-aged children living in Southern Ireland (Cork) participated; 25 in a younger group (mean 7;08 years) and 25 in an older group (mean 9;09 years). The children completed a computer-based comprehension task during which 20 sentences were spoken in a Cork accent (familiar) and 20 in a Tyrone accent (unfamiliar). The sentences were matched for syllable length and syntactic complexity. Main results: The younger children made significantly more errors when sentences were spoken in an unfamiliar accent. The older children made a similar number of incorrect responses to both familiar and unfamiliar accents. Conclusion: Younger children’s performance on comprehension tasks may be reduced when sentences are spoken in an unfamiliar accent. Possible explanations and the clinical implications are discussed.

scholarly journals A Narrative Evaluation of Mandarin-Speaking Children With Language Impairment

2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Hao ◽  
Li Sheng ◽  
Yiwen Zhang ◽  
Fan Jiang ◽  
Jill de Villiers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Impairment ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Lexical Diversity ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Narrative Skills ◽  
European Languages ◽  
Ambient Language ◽  
Comparable Performance

Purpose We aimed to study narrative skills in Mandarin-speaking children with language impairment (LI) to compare with children with LI speaking Indo-European languages. Method Eighteen Mandarin-speaking children with LI (mean age 6;2 [years;months]) and 18 typically developing (TD) age controls told 3 stories elicited using the Mandarin Expressive Narrative Test (de Villiers & Liu, 2014). We compared macrostructure-evaluating descriptions of characters, settings, initiating events, internal responses,plans, actions, and consequences. We also studied general microstructure, including productivity, lexical diversity, syntactic complexity, and grammaticality. In addition, we compared the use of 6 fine-grained microstructure elements that evaluate particular Mandarin linguistic features. Results Children with LI exhibited weaknesses in 5 macrostructure elements, lexical diversity, syntactic complexity, and 3 Mandarin-specific, fine-grained microstructure elements. Children with LI and TD controls demonstrated comparable performance on 2 macrostructure elements, productivity, grammaticality, and the remaining 3 fine-grained microstructure features. Conclusions Similarities and differences are noted in narrative profiles of children with LI who speak Mandarin versus those who speak Indo-European languages. The results are consistent with the view that profiles of linguistic deficits are shaped by the ambient language. Clinical implications are discussed.

scholarly journals Sibling Relationships, Personality Traits, Emotional, and Behavioral Difficulties in Autism Spectrum Disorders

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Longobardi ◽  
L. E. Prino ◽  
F. G. M. Gastaldi ◽  
T. Jungert
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Sibling Relationships ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Behavioral Difficulties ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Emotional Symptoms ◽  
The Impact

This study focused on parents’ perceptions of the quality of sibling relationship and its association with some behavioral and emotional characteristics of the typically developing sibling. The participants were parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and typically developing siblings. The sample size was 43. The group comprised 14 fathers (32.6%) and 29 mothers (67.4%) aged 33–53 years (M=43.56; SD = 5.23). The parents completed measures of siblings’ emotional and behavioral difficulties, siblings’ personality, and sibling relationships and their impact on families and siblings. The results showed that behavioral difficulties such as emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and peer relationship problems were significantly associated with negative sibling relationships—characterized by rivalry, aggression, avoidance, and teaching behavior toward the brother or sister with an autism spectrum disorder. The implications are that sibling-focused interventions should focus on improving negative sibling relationships to reduce the impact on the difficulties of the typical development of the sibling of both genders and shape the content and delivery framework accordingly. This can be done by providing skills and approaches for enhancing sibling relationships so both parties benefit.

Is Asymmetry of the Pons Associated with Hand Function and Manual Ability after Arterial Ischemic Stroke in Children?

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (03) ◽  
pp. 138-145
Author(s):  
Nedelina Slavova ◽  
Max Shojai ◽  
Regula Everts ◽  
Roland Wiest ◽  
Maja Steinlin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Upper Limb ◽  
Hand Function ◽  
Limb Movement ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Arterial Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Indirect Measure ◽  
The Asymmetry

Aim This study was designed to investigate how the asymmetry of the brain stem is related to hand function and manual ability after arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) diagnosed during childhood. Method Patients diagnosed with AIS during childhood (> 5 years old, diagnosis > 2 years before recruitment) and typically developing peers were recruited by the Swiss Neuropediatric Stroke Registry. Brainstem cross-sectional areas of each side at the level of the pons were measured. Pinch and grip strength were measured with a dynamometer, quality of upper limb movement by the Melbourne Assessment 2 and manual ability by the ABILHAND-kids. An asymmetry index was calculated for all measures (except the ABILHAND-kids). Differences between groups and correlations were calculated using nonparametric statistics. Results Fourteen AIS survivors without hemiparesis, 10 AIS survivors with hemiparesis, and 47 typically developing peers were assessed. Patients with hemiparesis showed the highest brainstem asymmetry. There was a significant positive correlation between brainstem asymmetry, the asymmetry of strength and quality of upper limb movement, and a significant negative correlation between brainstem asymmetry and manual ability. Interpretation In pediatric AIS survivors, brainstem asymmetry can serve as an indirect measure of corticospinal tract integrity. It is significantly correlated with strength, quality of movement, and manual ability.

scholarly journals Phonetics and Ambiguity Comprehension Gated Attention Network for Humor Recognition

Complexity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaochao Fan ◽  
Hongfei Lin ◽  
Liang Yang ◽  
Yufeng Diao ◽  
Chen Shen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Semantic Information ◽  
Semantic Representation ◽  
Research Attention ◽  
Attention Network ◽  
Phonetic Information ◽  
The Neural Network ◽  
Ambiguous Words ◽  
Public Datasets

Humor refers to the quality of being amusing. With the development of artificial intelligence, humor recognition is attracting a lot of research attention. Although phonetics and ambiguity have been introduced by previous studies, existing recognition methods still lack suitable feature design for neural networks. In this paper, we illustrate that phonetics structure and ambiguity associated with confusing words need to be learned for their own representations via the neural network. Then, we propose the Phonetics and Ambiguity Comprehension Gated Attention network (PACGA) to learn phonetic structures and semantic representation for humor recognition. The PACGA model can well represent phonetic information and semantic information with ambiguous words, which is of great benefit to humor recognition. Experimental results on two public datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of our model.

scholarly journals Drawing the answers: Sketching to support free and probed recall by child witnesses and victims with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Mattison ◽  
Coral J Dando ◽  
Thomas C Ormerod
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Interview ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Relative Effect ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Retrieval Accuracy ◽  
Event Information ◽  
Witness Interviews

The success of witness interviews in the criminal justice system depends on the accuracy of information obtained, which is a function of both amount and quality of information. Attempts to enhance witness retrieval such as mental reinstatement of context have been designed with typically developed adults in mind. In this article, the relative benefits of mental and sketch reinstatement mnemonics are explored with both typically developing children and children with autism. Children watched a crime event video, and their retrieval of event information was examined in free and probed recall phases of a cognitive interview. As expected, typically developing children recalled more correct information of all types than children with autism during free and probed recall phases. Sketching during free recall was more beneficial for both groups in both phases in reducing the amount of incorrect items, but the relative effect of sketching on enhancing retrieval accuracy was greater for children with autism. The results indicate the benefits of choosing retrieval mnemonics that are sensitive to the specific impairments of autistic individuals and suggest that retrieval accuracy during interviews can be enhanced, in some cases to the same level as that of typically developing individuals.

The effect of the audience on the spoken narrative of Chinese children

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-329
Author(s):  
Juan Wang ◽  
Maria Evangelou ◽  
Shanshan Xu
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
Chinese Children ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Gender Influence ◽  
Narrative Production ◽  
Evaluative Language

Abstract This study investigated the influence of the audience and narrator’s gender on spoken narratives produced by Chinese children. Sixty typically developing five- and six-year-old children were evenly divided into three groups. Each group was assigned one audience, being a teacher, a same-age peer, or a younger peer. The children were asked to view a wordless picture book and retell the story to the audience. The results showed that the children tended to use more macrostructure elements when telling stories to same-age peers, with boys using more macrostructure elements than girls. Girls used more words and more events when narrating to younger peers, whereas boys used more words, more diverse words, and more evaluative language when narrating to teachers. In addition, the children marked temporality more in narratives to younger peers than to same-age peers. The findings indicated that the audience and narrator’s gender influence the narrative production of Chinese children.

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