A study of a 12-year-old boy with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder investigated the effectiveness of a token economy incentive program implemented in the home setting to increase attention to task while doing homework assignments. Results found the boy's percentage of time spent on-task increased markedly. (Author/CR)

Examined visual fixation in infants 6 months to 2 years old for fit with theory of attentional inertia. Found that fixations had lognormal distribution, heart rate decreased during a look, and heart rate returned to prestimulus levels immediately before look offset. Older children showed different looking patterns to two types of stimuli; younger…

Thirty-eight children with autism were given movement therapy in small groups led by a trained movement therapist. After two months of biweekly sessions, the children spent less time wandering, more time showing on-task behavior, less time showing negative responses to being touched, and less time resisting the teacher than those in the control…

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of dexmethylphenidate hydrochloride (d-MPH, Focalin[TM]) for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and to test an a priori hypothesis that d-MPH would have a longer duration of action than d,l-threo-methylphenidate (d,l-MPH). Method: This was a randomized, double-blind study…

Objective: To examine gender differences in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder ("ADHD") symptom comorbidity with "oppositional defiant disorder", "conduct disorder", "separation anxiety disorder", "generalized anxiety disorder", speech therapy, and remedial reading in children. Method: From…

Test-retest reliability of the Test of Variables of Attention (T.O.V.A.) was investigated in two studies using two different time intervals: 90 min and 1 week (plus or minus 2 days). To investigate the 90-min reliability, 31 school-age children (M = 10 years, SD = 2.66) were administered the T.O.V.A. then read ministered the test 90 min afterward.…

This paper investigates whether there is a correlation between a poor Visual Attention Span (VAS) and the child's optometric status. Convergence excess impacts most upon a male achieving a VAS-3 more than 75 per cent of the time. Fifty per cent of females with eye-teaming problems are unlikely to achieve a VAS-3 more than 25 per cent of the time.…

Disruptive behavior may be associated with poor academic achievement due to covariance with attention problems and low IQ. Evidence is based on clinical samples and on associations between problem behaviors in young children and later achievement difficulties. The contemporaneous relations and their genetic and environmental influences have not…

Objective: The authors analyze the occurrence of grade repetition and inattention in children diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). Method: The participant group consisted of 310 patients with NF1 and a control group of 242 individuals. The number of grade repetitions for each participant during his or her time in elementary, middle, and…

Two experiments were conducted (1) to identify the component processes of language comprehension that draw upon cognitive capacity for their execution, and (2) to determine differences in patterns of resource allocation during integrative processing for good and poor readers. In the first experiment, nine good and nine poor college-age readers…

Four-, six- and eight-year-old children from an Evanston, Illinois school were the subjects for three experiments designed to evaluate the effects of color, complexity, movement, and incongruity on children's visual attention. Computer generated displays were used to: (1) assess developmental trends among the three age groups, (2) test a novel…

Evaluated was the effectiveness of the TAC (Training in Attention and Concentration) Program with seven trainable retarded persons, 8- to 20-years-old. Pre- and posttest data were obtained on the Maze-trial test, a picture discrimination test, buttons test, and object sort test. The TAC Program consisted of 10 structured lessons on such tasks as…

Thirty-two hyperactive children (ages 5-11) and 32 controls were tested on (1) a component selection task, measuring serial memory and incidental learning and (2) a cancellation task, assessing attentional variables and distractibility. It was concluded that a deficit in sustained attention and impulsivity best described the group differences.…

Describes two experiments that examined the conditions determining age changes in novelty preferences of children. (HOD)

The cognitive styles of 40 children (ages 8-17) with serious emotional disturbance (SED) were investigated via their performance on Planning-Attention-Simultaneous-Successive (PASS) model tasks as represented by the Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System (CAS). In the study, the children with SED and 40 typical children were administered the 14…