Supported in part by the Social and Rehabilitation Service, DHEW, under the designation of New York University as a Rehabilitation Research and Training Center.

Describes the various anomalies which occur in people's writing when there is right brain damage; compares writing impairments to the reading and drawing impairments that these patients also show. Analyzes the phenomenom of unilateral visual neglect and suggests hypotheses as to the nature of this disorder. (SED)

A new method generates specific predictions concerning the expected frequencies of aphasia after unilateral injury to the brain in the left- and right-handed. These predictions are then compared with the observed data for all known studies between 1935 and 1973 to derive the best-fitting model of hemispheric speech lateralization in the left- and…

Shaky handwriting is often the first symptom of essential tremor (ET) in children. Physical limitations include difficulty in eating and drinking. One very disabling aspect of ET is the social embarrassment it causes. The article looks at what parents and teachers can do if they suspect a child has ET. (SM)

While many studies of motor control in autism have focused on specific motor signs, there has been a lack of research examining the complete range of subtle neuromotor signs. This study compared performance on a neurologic examination standardized for children (PANESS, Physical and Neurological Exam for Subtle Signs, Denckla ["1974 Developmental…

The distribution of intermanual discrepancies on three motor tests (Grooved Pegboard, Finger Tapping and Dynamometer) were examined in normal and unilateral brain lesion samples. Considerable variability in the intermanual discrepancies was observed in all three samples. Therefore, the consistency of discrepancies across tasks was examined. The…

J. Adams' application of the closed-loop theory (involving feedback and correction) on human learning and motor performance is described. The theory's applicability to behavioral kinesiology (the science of human movement) is discussed in the context of physical therapy, stressing the importance of knowledge of results as a motivating factor.…

Compares education matched young brain-damaged, young nonbrain-damaged, old brain-damaged and old nonbrain-damaged groups on a battery of measures of cognitive, perceptual, and motor skills. By factor analysis, the 26 original measures were reduced to four, called nonverbal memory, language ability, motor ability, and psychomotor problem solving.…

R-technique factor analysis was used to correlate results of sensorimotor, psycholinguistic and cognitive tests given to California children with learning disabilities. Results show not all children with specific neural disorders perform poorly on related tests where low scores would be expected. (PD)

This article considers the relation between symptoms of movement disturbance and symptoms of autism. Analysis points out the difficulties posed by current definitions of "autism" and ways that a movement disturbance can affect a person's experience of life as well as how he/she is perceived by others. (DB)

The possible relation between stuttering and the basal ganglia is discussed. Important clues to the pathophysiology of stuttering are given by conditions known to alleviate dysfluency, like the rhythm effect, chorus speech, and singing. Information regarding pharmacologic trials, lesion studies, brain imaging, genetics, and developmental changes…

For many children, especially those with reading difficulties, a motor-kinesthetic learning activity may be an effective tool to teach complex concepts. With this in mind, the authors developed and tested a game designed to teach fourth- to sixth-grade children some basic principles of nervous system function by allowing the children themselves to…

Sixteen pupils, aged four to six, with various disabilities requiring intervention services in motor skills acquisition, participated in a follow-up study. The study found that gross motor gains resulting from intensive intervention failed to continue once the intervention was withdrawn. Fine motor skills were not affected by the gross motor…