Roles of c-Fos, EGR-1, PKA, and PKC in cognitive dysfunction in rats after propofol anesthesia

Abstract This study aimed to investigate possible changes in the spatial memory of rats and the expression or activity of EGR-1, c-Fos, PKA, and PKC after propofol anesthesia. Thirty-six Sprague-Dawley rats aged 20 months and 36 Sprague-Dawley rats aged three months were each randomly divided into three groups: the control group, the Morris Water Maze (MWM) group, and the propofol group. In the propofol groups of both young and aged rats, the rats were anesthetized by propofol for two or four hours and then performed the MWM test two days or two weeks after anesthesia to assess cognitive function. EGR-1, c-Fos, PKA, and PKC expressions in the rat hippocampus were determined via immunohistochemistry. For the older rats, the escape latency in the P4h/2d group was significantly prolonged (P < 0.05), and the learning curve was right-shifted in the P4h/2w group (P < 0.05). The expression levels of EGR-1, c-Fos, PKA, and PKC in the MWM groups were significantly higher than those in the control groups (P < 0.05). In the P4h/2d group of aged rats, the expression levels of both PKA and PKC were decreased compared with those of the MWM groups. The decreased expression of both protein kinases may be responsible for the observed impairment after propofol anesthesia

Latent Profile Analysis of Cognition in a Non-Demented Diverse Cohort: A Focus on Modifiable Cardiovascular and Lifestyle Factors.

BACKGROUND: Cognitively-defined subgroups are well-documented within neurodegeneration. OBJECTIVE: We examined such profiles in diverse non-demented older adults and considered how resulting subgroups relate to modifiable factors associated with neurodegeneration. METHODS: 121 non-demented (MMSE = 28.62) diverse (46%non-Latino Black, 40%non-Latino White, 15%Latino) community-dwelling adults (age = 67.7 years) completed cognitive, cardiovascular, physical activity, and diet evaluations. Latent profile analyses (LPA) employed six cognitive scores (letter fluency, letter-number sequencing, confrontational naming, 'animal' fluency, list-learning delayed recall, and recognition discriminability) to characterize cognitively-defined subgroups. Differences between resulting subgroups on cardiovascular (composite scores of overall health; specific health components including fasting blood levels) and lifestyle (sedentary behavior; moderate-to-vigorous physical activity; Mediterranean diet consumption) factors were examined using ANCOVAs adjusting for relevant confounders. RESULTS: Based on sample means across cognitive scores, LPA resulted in the following cognitive subgroups: 1) high-average cognition, 55%non-Latino White and 64%female participants; 2) average cognition, 58%non-Latino Black and 68%male participants; 3) lower memory, 58%non-Latino Black participants; and 4) lower executive functioning, 70%Latinos. The high-average subgroup reported significantly higher Mediterranean diet consumption than the average subgroup (p = 0.001). The lower executive functioning group had higher fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c than all other subgroups (p-values<0.001). CONCLUSION: LPA revealed two average subgroups reflecting level differences in cognition previously reported between non-Latino White and Black adults, and two lower cognition subgroups in domains similar to those documented in neurodegeneration. These subgroups, and their differences, suggest the importance of considering social determinants of health in cognitive aging and modifiable risk.

Challenges of Cognitive Interviewing in Sensitive Health Topic Research.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive interviewing is a qualitative methodology for generating valid, reliable patient-centered outcome measures. There are challenges inherent in research on sensitive topics that require thoughtful approach by the scientist for data collection methods, analysis, and interpretation. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this article is to provide principles of cognitive interviewing for sensitive health topics. METHODS: We review the challenges inherent in cognitive interviewing for sensitive topics scale development. We illustrate adaptations to general cognitive interviewing for sensitive topics through the presentation and analysis of a research exemplar. RESULTS: Researchers must consider threats to quality of sensitive topic data collection and potential harms to participants and researchers. We provide specific examples of how these risks were mitigated in a sensitive topic scale development study. DISCUSSION: Unique challenges of cognitive interviewing for sensitive health topics can be addressed with a well-planned data collection strategy, anticipating participant safety concerns, and consideration to researcher well-being.

Combining verbal veracity assessment techniques to distinguish truth tellers from lie tellers / Combinando técnicas verbales de evaluación de la veracidad para discriminar testimonios verdaderos de falsos

Cognitive Credibility Assessment (CCA) is a verbal lie detection tool consisting of several interview techniques. These techniques have been examined separately but never together. Reflecting the dynamic nature of CCA we combined several of the techniques (free recall followed by a model statement, followed by a reverse order instruction, and followed by a sketch instruction). We examined the new information provided after each stage of the interview and also compared the information provided in the initial recall with the information provided after the entire interview. A total of 47 truth tellers and 47 lie tellers went on a mission. Truth tellers were asked to report their mission truthfully, whereas lie tellers were requested to lie about several aspects of the mission. We measured the total units of information (total details) provided in the interview and the number of complications reported. The results indicate that the pre-registered hypothesis (Hypothesis 1) was supported for complications. Truth tellers reported more complications than lie tellers in each stage of the interview and the difference was more pronounced after the entire interview than after the free recall. As a conclusion, CCA was an effective lie detection method when complications were taken into account

La evaluación cognitiva de la credibilidad (ECC) es una herramienta verbal de detección de mentiras que incluye varias técnicas de entrevista. Dichas técnicas se han examinado por separado pero nunca juntas. Para reflejar el carácter dinámico de la ECC combinamos varias de las técnicas (recuerdo libre seguido de una declaración tipo, seguido de una instrucción de recuerdo en orden inverso, y de una instrucción para que hagan un sketch -esquema- durante la narración del evento). Analizamos la información nueva proporcionada tras cada etapa de la entrevista y también comparamos la información procedente del recuerdo inicial con la aportada por toda la entrevista. Un total de 47 sujetos que decían la verdad y 47 que mentían fueron enviados a una misión. A los participantes de la condición de testimonio verdadero se les pidió que informaran de su misión de modo veraz, mientras que los de la condición de mentira se les solicitó que mintieran sobre distintos aspectos de la misión. Se midió el total de unidades de información (detalles totales) de la entrevista y el número de complicaciones de las que se informaba. Los resultados mostraron que los participantes de la condición de verdad informaban de más detalles y complicaciones (hipótesis 1) en cada fase de la entrevista siendo las mayores diferencias tras la entrevista global que tras el recuerdo libre. En conclusión, la categoría complicaciones de la ECC es eficaz en la detección de la mentira

A systematic review of values interventions in acceptance and commitment therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is characterized by a focus on contextual change and advances topics like acceptance, mindfulness, values, spirituality and relationship. It sets itself apart from other third wave approaches by bringing to the center of the therapeutic work values clarification and living. Previous systematic reviews provided support for the efficacy and effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) but it's unknown of reviews that comprehensively assess values interventions with a focus on examining the specific effects of working with values or meaning in life in a wide variety of settings, populations and methodological designs. The goal of this study is to investigate empirical interventions that utilizes values as conceptualized by ACT. Systematic searches in 5 databases were performed up to April 2020. For inclusion, the intervention study must have targeted values process as conceptualized by ACT. Systematic reviews, theoretical or conceptual papers were excluded. Analyzed data were publication year, language, country, number and description of participants, mean age, sample origin, outcome variables, study design and quality and overall results. Seventeen studies were identified. Results show a broad scope of research methods, in a variety of settings and populations. According to reported results, values interventions had the desired effect on the outcome variable

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Association Between the Duration of Untreated Psychosis and Selective Cognitive Performance in Community-Dwelling Individuals With Chronic Untreated Schizophrenia in Rural China.

Importance: Cognitive deficits constitute core features of schizophrenia, but the trajectories of cognitive difficulties in chronic untreated schizophrenia remain unclear. Objective: To assess the association of neuropsychological deficits with duration of untreated psychosis in individuals with chronic untreated schizophrenia. Design, Setting, and Participants: Community-dwelling individuals with chronic untreated schizophrenia (untreated patient group) and individuals without mental illness (control group) were recruited from predominantly rural communities in Ningxia, China between June 20, 2016, and August 6, 2019, and administered the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, the Mini-Mental State Examination, an 8-test version of the MATRICS Consensus Cognition Battery adapted for use in individuals with low levels of education, and a measure of social cognition. Main Outcomes and Measures: Comparison of cognitive test scores between the two groups and association of cognitive test scores with duration of untreated schizophrenia. Results: The patient group included 197 individuals with chronic untreated schizophrenia (101 men [51.3%]; mean [SD] age, 52.1 [11.8] years; median [interquartile range] years of schooling, 3 [0-6] years; median [interquartile range] years of untreated psychosis, 22.9 [14.9-32.8] years). The control group included 220 individuals (118 men [53.6%]; mean [SD] age, 52.1 [11.2] years; median [interquartile range] years of schooling, 4 [0-6] years). The untreated patient group performed significantly worse than the control group on all cognitive measures (adjusted partial Spearman correlation coefficient [Spearman ρ] ranged from -0.35 for the revised Chinese version of the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test to -0.60 for the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised; P < .001 for all comparisons). Longer durations of untreated psychosis were associated with lower performance in 3 MATRICS Consensus Cognition Battery measures assessing different aspects of executive functioning (Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised [ρ = -0.20; P = .04]; Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia, Symbol Coding subtest [ρ = -0.35; P < .001]; and Neuropsychological Assessment Battery, Mazes subtest [ρ = -0.24; P = .01]). The median duration of untreated psychosis (22.9 years) was associated with estimated score reductions in the 3 measures of 34% (95% CI, 10%-52%), 43% (95% CI, 28%-55%), and 57% (95% CI, 31%-73%), respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: The findings of this study suggest that long-term untreated schizophrenia was associated with decreases in selective cognitive abilities; both neurodegenerative pathology and neurodevelopmental dysfunction may be factors in cognition in persistent psychosis. Expanding research to include cohorts of patients from underserved rural communities in low- and middle-income countries may provide new insights about the etiological factors, disease course, and management of schizophrenia.

Diagnostic Associations of Processing Speed in a Transdiagnostic, Pediatric Sample.

INTRODUCTION: The present study examines the relationships between processing speed (PS), mental health disorders, and learning disorders. Prior work has tended to explore relationships between PS deficits and specific diagnoses in isolation of one another. Here, we simultaneously investigated PS associations with five diagnoses (i.e., anxiety, autism, ADHD, depressive, specific learning) in a large-scale, transdiagnostic, community self-referred sample. METHOD: 843 children, ages 8-16 were included from the Healthy Brain Network (HBN) Biobank. Principal component analysis (PCA) was employed to create a composite measure of four PS tasks, referred to as PC1. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) between the four PS measures, as well as PC1, were calculated to assess reliability. RESULTS: ICCs were moderate between WISC-V tasks (0.663), and relatively modest between NIH Toolbox Pattern Comparison and other PS scales (0.14-0.27). Regression analyses revealed specific significant relationships between PS and reading and math disabilities, ADHD-inattentive presentation (ADHD-I), and ADHD-combined presentation (ADHD-C). After accounting for inattention, the present study did not find a significant relationship with Autism Spectrum Disorder. DISCUSSION: Our examination of PS in a large, transdiagnostic sample suggested more specific associations with ADHD and learning disorders than the literature currently suggests. Implications for understanding how PS interacts with a highly heterogeneous childhood sample are discussed.

Atractylon treatment prevents sleep-disordered breathing-induced cognitive dysfunction by suppression of chronic intermittent hypoxia-induced M1 microglial activation.

Chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) induced by sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a key factor involved in cognitive dysfunction (CD). Increasing evidence has shown that atractylon (ATR) has anti-inflammatory effects. However, it remains unclear if ATR has a protective effect against SDB-induced nerve cell injury and CD. So, in the present study, CIH-exposed mice and CIH-induced BV2 cells were used to mimic SDB. The results showed that ATR treatment decreased CIH-induced CD and the expression of inflammatory factors in the hippocampal region by suppression of M1 microglial activation and promotion of M2 microglial activation. Also, ATR treatment promoted sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) expression. Down-regulation of SIRT3 decreased the protective effect of ATR against CIH-induced microglial cell injury. Furthermore, in vitro detection found that SIRT3 silencing suppressed ATR-induced M2 microglial activation after exposure to CIH conditions. Taken together, these results indicate that ATR treatment prevents SDB-induced CD by inhibiting CIH-induced M1 microglial activation, which is mediated by SIRT3 activation.

Cognición en la esquizofrenia. Estado actual de la cuestión (I): métodos de evaluación y correlatos neurales / Cognition in schizophrenia. State of the art (I): assessment methods and neural correlates

La investigación sugiere que los síntomas, la neurocognición y la cognición social se influyen mutuamente y se relacionan, a su vez, con el funcionamiento psicosocial en la esquizofrenia. La medida de los déficits neurocognitivos se ha desarrollado notablemente con el protocolo “MATRICS”. Estos déficits se han relacionado con un funcionamiento anormal de la corteza prefrontal dorsolateral y con defectos en su conectividad con otras áreas cerebrales. Por otro lado, el deterioro de la cognición social se ha vinculado al llamado “cerebro social” y se ha relacionado con los síntomas y el funcionamiento psicosocial. La atención, memoria y función ejecutiva parecen alteradas en la esquizofrenia, relacionándose con un funcionamiento anormal de estructuras cerebrales y su conectividad entre ellas. Déficits en diferentes dominios de la cognición social, vinculados al llamado “cerebro social”, se apuntan como un posible marcador endofenotípico de la esquizofrenia. No obstante, problemas tanto metodológicos como conceptuales impiden asumir estas conclusiones como definitivas

Research suggests that symptoms, neurocognition and social cognition influence each other and are related to psychosocial functioning in schizophrenia. The measurement of neurocognitive deficits in schizophrenia has been remarkably developed with the "MATRICS" protocol. In addition, these impairments have been linked to abnormal functioning of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and problems in its connectivity with other brain areas. On the other hand, deficits in social cognition have been linked to the so-called "social brain" and have been related to symptoms and psychosocial functioning. Attention, memory and executive function seem to be altered in schizophrenia, relating to abnormal functioning of brain structures and their connectivity between them. Impairments in different social cognitive domains, linked to the so-called "social brain", could be an endophenotypic marker of schizophrenia. However, possible methodological and conceptual issues prevent to take these conclusions as definitive

Cognición en la esquizofrenia. Estado actual de la cuestión (II): sesgos cognitivos, modelos explicativos y programas de intervención / Cognition in schizophrenia. State of the art (II): cognitive biases, explana-tory models, and intervention programs

La investigación sugiere que los síntomas, la neurocognición y la cognición social (CS) se influyen mutuamente y se relacionan a su vez con el funcionamiento psicosocial en la esquizofrenia. Tanto los déficits neurocognitivos como en CS podrían tener mayor responsabilidad que los síntomas clínicos sobre el funcionamiento social. Distintos sesgos de razonamiento cognitivo, como el “salto a conclusiones”, contribuyen a la formación y mantenimiento de los síntomas, y al funcionamiento en la vida real. La rehabilitación cognitiva ha mostrado cierta utilidad en la mejora de la cognición y del funcionamiento en las habilidades de la vida diaria de las personas con psicosis a través de sus posibles efectos sobre la neuroplasticidad cerebral. Diferentes programas, como el Entrenamiento Metacognitivo, aparecen como intervenciones prometedoras para mejorar los sesgos de razonamiento. La neurocognición, la CS y ciertos sesgos de razonamiento se interrelacionan para predecir el funcionamiento social en la esquizofrenia. Distintas intervenciones podrían mejorar estos procesos a través de sus efectos sobre la neuroplasticidad cerebral. No obstante, a pesar del creciente cuerpo de investigación, los resultados distan de ser concluyentes

Research suggests that symptoms, neurocognition and social cognition (SC) influence each other and are related to psychosocial functioning. Both neurocognitive (especially in verbal memory) and SC impairments could have greater responsibility than clinical symptoms on social functioning in schizophrenia. Different biases of cognitive reasoning, such as "jumping to conclusions", contribute both to the formation and main-tenance of symptoms and to the functioning in daily life. Cognitive rehabilitation has demonstrated its usefulness in improving cognition, symptoms, and daily life skills in people with psychosis through its effects on brain neuroplasticity. Different programs, such as Metacognitive Training (MCT), appear as promising interventions to improve the typical reasoning biases involved in psychotic disorders. Neurocognition, social cognition and certain reasoning biases interrelate to predict social functioning in schizophrenia. Different psychosocial interventions could improve these processes through their effects on brain neuroplasticity. However, despite the growing body of research, the results are far from being definitive

Informatics and Cognitive Assessment: A RUDAS Scale Paradigm.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive assessment is an essential element of the screening process of Alzheimer's disease. The prevalence of dementia is increasing and so are the numbers of immigrants and elderly population relocating and in need for health diagnosis and treatment. However, most of the psychometric tools used in psychological assessments are time-consuming and suffer from biases of language and cultural restrictions. OBJECTIVES: Our objective was to create a computerized version of a multicultural cognitive screening test, which would simplify cognitive assessment of elderly multicultural population, as routine part of health check-up procedures. METHODS: The application was implemented in Android Studio and was written in Java code with the use of a home PC and a tablet. Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) was chosen. RUDAS is a cognitive screening tool with good psychological characteristics, which was created for multicultural and bilingual populations and was free to download. The collaboration with an authorized psychologist was essential for the ethics of the psychometric science. RESULTS: The complete computerized version of RUDAS will include the six-item questionnaire, assessing specific cognitive domains which are in high correlation with Alzheimer's screening process, such as registration, visuospatial orientation, praxis, visuo-constructional drawing, judgment, memory recall and language. CONCLUSION: The utilization of informatics in making cognitive assessment a user-friendly, validated, not time- or cost-consuming procedure would add value to psychometric tools which still are administered with "pen and paper", when this proceeds with respect to the ethics of the science.

Validation of the French version of the « Meta-Cognition Questionnaire ¼ for adolescents (MCQ-Af): Evolution of metacognitive beliefs with age and their links with anxiety during adolescence.

INTRODUCTION: The Meta-Cognitions Questionnaire for Adolescents (MCQ-A) measures individual differences of metacognitive beliefs and monitoring thought to be involved in the onset and maintenance of psychological disorders, especially in those involving anxiety. This assessment tool has been employed in research and clinical settings involving French-speaking adolescents, but appropriate validation has yet to be conducted. This article aims to first validate the francophone version of the MCQ-Af using measures sensitive to the expression of anxiety, and secondly, to examine the influence of age and gender on metacognitive beliefs, anxiety and their links. METHOD: 214 adolescents (114 females) between 13 and 17 completed the MCQ-Af (French version) as well as the Revised-Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (R-CMAS), French version, to assess anxiety manifestations. Structural validity was examined with confirmatory factor analyses. Three models were compared to the higher order five factor model proposed in the original validation study. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were also performed. Student's t tests as well as simple and stepwise regressions were conducted to assess for age and gender. RESULTS: The five correlated factors retained in the original version of the MCQ were replicated, and confirmatory factor analyses yielded comparable fit indices for a covariate factor model, as well as for a bifactor model. The bifactor model was privileged for theoretical reasons. Analyses were performed on a shortened questionnaire of 27 items as 3 items (2, 12 and 14) had non-significant loadings in prior path analyses. Age and gender differences were found in specific sub-factors of the MCQ-Af; positive and negative metacognitive beliefs seem to increase with age; girls seem to score higher on the negative metacognitive beliefs and thought control dimensions. The study further reports specific links between anxiety manifestation and negative and positive metacognitive beliefs, as well as confidence in one's memory. A modest influence of age and gender on this link was also highlighted. CONCLUSION: The present research provides the first evidence that the MCQ-Af is a valid and reliable instrument to assess individual differences of metacognitive beliefs in French-speaking adolescents. Nevertheless, it highlights that caution should be taken in regards of 3 items in particular (items 2, 12 and 14). Furthermore, age and gender in assessed samples of adolescents might influence the scores of the different dimensions of the questionnaire.

The role of parental social class, education and unemployment on child cognitive development / El rol de la clase social, la educación y el desempleo parentales en el desarrollo cognitivo infantil

OBJECTIVE: Assessing the association between socioeconomic gradient and cognitive development among children of a Spanish birth cohort aged 5-6 years from a gender perspective. METHOD: Cognitive development was assessed on 525 children aged 5-6 years in the INMA-Valencia cohort, with the Global Cognitive Score (GCS) from McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities. Information on social class, education level and employment was collected for both parents in addition to other sociodemographic factors, parental, family and child characteristics. The relationship between maternal and paternal socioeconomic gradient and cognitive development was assessed by linear regressions and comparing the variance explained by each indicator measured in the mother and father. RESULTS: Maternal socioeconomic gradient indicators explained more variance on GCS than paternal. Maternal education and paternal social class had an important individual effect that stayed after adjusting by other parental, child and family determinants. In the multivariable analysis, maternal education, age and intelligence, paternal social class and the child's age and sex were significantly associated with cognitive development. CONCLUSIONS: Diverse socioeconomic gradient factors have an important influence on cognitive development, maternal education being the strongest determinant. Policies should be implemented to mitigate the negative effects of this gradient on child development

OBJETIVO: Evaluar la asociación del gradiente socioeconómico y el desarrollo cognitivo en niños y niñas de una cohorte española a los 5-6 años de edad desde una perspectiva de género. MÉTODO: Se evaluó el desarrollo cognitivo en 525 niños/as de 5-6 años de la cohorte INMA-Valencia, mediante la Puntuación Global Cognitiva (PGC) de las Escalas McCarthy para niños y niñas. Se recogió información de ambos progenitores sobre clase social, nivel de estudios y empleo, además de otros factores sociodemográficos, características parentales, de la familia y del niño o la niña. La relación entre el gradiente socioeconómico materno y paterno y el desarrollo cognitivo se evaluó mediante modelos de regresión lineal y comparando la varianza explicada por cada uno de los indicadores medidos en la madre y en el padre. RESULTADOS: Los indicadores de gradiente socioeconómico de la madre explicaron más varianza del índice de PGC que los del padre. La educación materna y la clase social paterna tuvieron un importante efecto individual, que se mantuvo tras ajustar por otros determinantes de los progenitores, del niño o de la niña, y del entorno familiar. En el análisis multivariante, la educación, la edad y la inteligencia maternas, la clase social paterna, y la edad y el sexo del infante se asociaron significativamente con el desarrollo cognitivo. CONCLUSIONES: Distintos factores del gradiente socioeconómico tienen influencia en el desarrollo cognitivo, siendo la educación materna el determinante más fuerte. Deberían implementarse políticas para paliar los efectos negativos de este gradiente en el desarrollo infantil

A Sparse Latent Class Model for Cognitive Diagnosis.

Cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) are latent variable models developed to infer latent skills, knowledge, or personalities that underlie responses to educational, psychological, and social science tests and measures. Recent research focused on theory and methods for using sparse latent class models (SLCMs) in an exploratory fashion to infer the latent processes and structure underlying responses. We report new theoretical results about sufficient conditions for generic identifiability of SLCM parameters. An important contribution for practice is that our new generic identifiability conditions are more likely to be satisfied in empirical applications than existing conditions that ensure strict identifiability. Learning the underlying latent structure can be formulated as a variable selection problem. We develop a new Bayesian variable selection algorithm that explicitly enforces generic identifiability conditions and monotonicity of item response functions to ensure valid posterior inference. We present Monte Carlo simulation results to support accurate inferences and discuss the implications of our findings for future SLCM research and educational testing.

"By the Way" How People With Aphasia and Their Communication Partners Initiate New Topics of Conversation.

Purpose The ability to initiate new topics of conversation is a basic skill integral to communicative independence and agency that is susceptible to breakdown in aphasia (Barnes, Candlin, & Ferguson, 2013), yet this discourse skill has received little research attention. Healthy adults (HAs) follow 3 established patterns of structural organization to cue the conversation partner when an utterance is intended to initiate a new topic (Schegloff & Sacks, 1973; Svennevig, 1999). In addition, speakers have the option to use these mechanisms of topic initiation (TI) individually or in conjunction with one another. Occasionally, speakers do not follow these conversational macrostructure expectations, in which case TI occurs abruptly, referred to as a noncoherent TI (NC-TI; Mentis & Prutting, 1991). Understanding how TI is disrupted by aphasia requires foundational knowledge regarding the relative use/combined use of TI mechanisms and NC-TI in HAs and persons with aphasia (PWAs). The purpose of this study is to investigate how PWAs and their conversation partners initiate new topics of conversation and to determine the relationship between the number of TI methods used and communicative success (CS) in persons with mild aphasia (PWA-Mild) and persons with moderate and severe aphasia (PWA-Mod/Sev). Method Six PWA-Mild and 4 PWA-Mod/Sev engaged in 15-min unstructured conversations with different HA partners. Utterances were coded for types of TI used by both partners and were evaluated for CS using a 4-point scale (Leaman & Edmonds, 2019) for PWAs. Results/Implications PWAs used NC-TI with a much greater frequency than HAs who never used NC-TI. The rate of NC-TI was associated with increased severity of aphasia. HAs and PWA-Mild used cohesion most often as the method for TI, while PWA-Mod/Sev used it least often. CS was moderately positively correlated with the number of methods of TI used in PWA-Mod/Sev. However, no such correlation existed for PWA-Mild; this group achieved a high degree of CS on TI utterances, independent of the number of methods of TI used. Findings include the clinical implication suggesting PWA-Mod/Sev may benefit from simultaneous use of TI mechanisms to achieve better CS during conversation. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.9765164.

A Task-Based Taxonomy of Cognitive Biases for Information Visualization.

Information visualization designers strive to design data displays that allow for efficient exploration, analysis, and communication of patterns in data, leading to informed decisions. Unfortunately, human judgment and decision making are imperfect and often plagued by cognitive biases. There is limited empirical research documenting how these biases affect visual data analysis activities. Existing taxonomies are organized by cognitive theories that are hard to associate with visualization tasks. Based on a survey of the literature we propose a task-based taxonomy of 154 cognitive biases organized in 7 main categories. We hope the taxonomy will help visualization researchers relate their design to the corresponding possible biases, and lead to new research that detects and addresses biased judgment and decision making in data visualization.

Profiles of Normal Cognition in Essential Tremor.

OBJECTIVES: Patients with essential tremor exhibit heterogeneous cognitive functioning. Although the majority of patients fall under the broad classification of cognitively "normal," essential tremor is associated with increased risk for mild cognitive impairment and dementia. It is possible that patterns of cognitive performance within the wide range of normal functioning have predictive utility for mild cognitive impairment or dementia. These cross-sectional analyses sought to determine whether cognitive patterns, or "clusters," could be identified among individuals with essential tremor diagnosed as cognitively normal. We also determined whether such clusters, if identified, were associated with demographic or clinical characteristics of patients. METHODS: Elderly subjects with essential tremor (age >55 years) underwent comprehensive neuropsychological testing. Domain means (memory, executive function, attention, visuospatial abilities, and language) from 148 individuals diagnosed as cognitively normal were partitioned using k-means cluster analysis. Individuals in each cluster were compared according to cognitive functioning (domain means and test scores), demographic factors, and clinical variables. RESULTS: There were three clusters. Cluster 1 (n = 64) was characterized by comparatively low memory scores (p < .001), Cluster 2 (n = 39) had relatively low attention and visuospatial scores (p < .001), and Cluster 3 (n = 45) exhibited consistently high performance across all domains. Cluster 1 had lower Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores and reported more prescription medication use and lower balance confidence. CONCLUSIONS: Three patterns of cognitive functioning within the normal range were evident and tracked with certain clinical features. Future work will examine the extent to which such patterns predict conversion to mild cognitive impairment and/or dementia.

Psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the instrument for measuring different types of cognitive load (MDT-CL).

AIM: To translate the instrument for measuring different types of cognitive load (MDT-CL) into Chinese and assess the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the MDT-CL. BACKGROUND: The MDT-CL is needed for hospital administrators to identify which nursing staff are prone to high cognitive load and to provide tailored interventions for specific types of cognitive load. METHODS: The MDT-CL was translated into Chinese using forward and back translation, cultural adaptation and pilot tested. The reliability and validity of the instrument were assessed with intensive care unit (ICU) nurses in three tertiary hospitals in China. RESULTS: A total of 222 ICU nurses were recruited. The scale-content validity index of the Chinese version of the MDT-CL was 0.966. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that all the goodness-of-fit indicators were acceptable. Cronbach's α coefficient was 0.818. Test-retest reliability was 0.785. CONCLUSIONS: The Chinese version of the MDT-CL is a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating the cognitive load of ICU nurses in China. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The validated Chinese version of the MDT-CL is a feasible, quantitative tool for evaluating different types of cognitive load in busy clinical practice, suggesting significant clinical application value.

Functioning of cognitive memory inhibition processesin people with Down syndrome: an empirical study

Cognitive inhibition is part of executive functions. When it exercises control over memory processes, it has the function of regulating the accessibility of memories and allows interference to be resolved. The impairment of its functioning has been related to the presence of forgetfulness of relevant information. In this research, we study the functioning of cognitive memory inhibition processes in people with intellectual disabilities in tasks of delayed visual recognition and analyze the influence of age. For this purpose, 36 people with Down syndrome (mean age = 33.44, standard deviation = 7.54, 50% females) and 36 people with neurotypical development (mean age = 33.55, standard deviation = 7.52, 50% females) participated. The results reflected a lower effectiveness in the group of people with Down syndrome, F(1, 68) = 159.09, p < .001, = .70. The people in the group with Down syndrome had difficulties in interference resolution, both in the subgroup of young people (p = .014, = 0.88) and in the subgroup of older people (p = .022, = 0.67). The impairment of cognitive inhibition in people with Down syndrome warrants the need to develop specific intervention programs for this process

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