Introduction: The objective of the current study was to design and pilot-test a nonverbal intelligence test for children and adolescents with visual impairment (i.e., blindness and low vision) aged 10 to 16 years. Method: A three-dimensional haptic matrix test of nonverbal cognitive abilities (3-DHMT-CA), initially developed for adults with visual…

Introduction: This work investigates if simple two-dimensional (2D) tactile shapes can facilitate encoding, retention, and retrieval of associated information in the form of one-word labels. It also questions the need for the resemblance of tactile graphics with respective visual referents. Methods: Four experiments were conducted using recall…

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to develop and implement an audio-tactile protocol for therapeutic intervention in individuals with visual impairments. Methods: The Physiotherapy Protocol for People with Visual Impairment (PP-PVI) was developed following five steps: physiotherapy evaluation, linguistic selection, protocol design,…

Although very rare, the existing research on the biological education of blind people indicates that teaching content is not fully in line with the sensory perception of that content by the blind. The aim of this study is to analyse the morphological details which the blind can register in multisensory plant research and to harmonise the…

Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine whether individuals with congenital blindness make more recognizable drawings of known objects that are furniture sized (table, man, tree) rather than hand sized (egg, coconut, banana; Hypothesis 1). We also investigated whether knowledge that the tactile drawings had been produced by people who…

The aim of this study is to examine the performance in coding and representing of near-space in relation to vision status (blindness vs. normal vision) and sensory modality (touch vs. vision). Forty-eight children and teenagers participated. Sixteen of the participants were totally blind or had only light perception, 16 were blindfolded sighted…

This study used a single-subject multiple baseline across participants design to evaluate the effectiveness of a modified picture exchange communication system (PECS) teaching protocol with tactile symbols. Three students (two male, one female) aged 12-17 years who had autism and were blind participated in the study. The instructional program…

This qualitative multiple case study explored the conceptual frameworks of two congenitally blind male adolescents on the nature of matter. We examined participants' responses on four tactile investigations focused on concepts and processes associated with matter changes. The matter changes investigated were dissolution, chemical change,…

All Ss' accuracy decreased with increasing task difficulty. Accuracy of nonretarded Ss did not differ as a function of visual status. Blind retarded Ss were more accurate than were sighted retarded Ss. (Author)

A cell-by-cell analysis of finger movements of 16 blind adolescent braille readers was conducted to separate, catalog, and measure the components of scanning movements across braille cells as a function of reading proficiency. Results confirmed the superiority of bimanual reading and suggested that the two hands may perform different functions.…

Six teenagers with visual impairments were given a guided tour of an historic site in Belgium and then questioned concerning their spatial representation of the site and remembered information. Analysis revealed that orally presented information did not compensate for visual cues. Findings led to development of a scale model of the site adapted…

Visualized braille was presented on closed circuit television (CCTV) to six blind tactile braille reading subjects (ages 12-50). Results supported cross-modal transfer of learning from tactile to visual modality. After intensive visual training, these subjects could discriminate visual forms and read ordinary print using the CCTV. (Author/BS)

THE FOLLOWING REPORTS CONCERNING RESEARCH WITH THE VISUALLY HANDICAPPED ARE CONTAINED IN THIS BULLETIN--"SELECTED IMPAIRMENTS BY ETIOLOGY AND ACTIVITY LIMITATION, UNITED STATES, JULY 1959-JUNE 1961,""AN EXPERIMENT USING REVISED STIMULUS PRESENTATION" BY S. KARP, "EXPERIMENTS IN TACTUAL PERCEPTION" BY S. KARP, "A STUDY OF BRAILLE CODE REVISIONS" BY…