scholarly journals Comparing the semantic networks of children with cochlear implants and children with typical hearing: Extending Kenett et al. (2013) by considering Hearing Age.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Socher ◽  
ulrika löfkvist ◽  
Malin Wass
Keyword(s):  
Cochlear Implants ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Chronological Age ◽  
Perceptual Quality ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Fluency Task

Purpose: Kenett et al. (2013) report that the sematic network of children with CI is less structured compared to the sematic network of children with TH. This study aims to evaluate if such differences are only evident if children with CI are compared to children with TH matched on chronological age, or also if they are compared to children with TH matched on hearing age. Method: The performance of a group of children with CI on a verbal fluency task was compared to the performance of a group of chronological-age matched children with TH. Subsequently, computational network analysis was used to compare the semantic network structure of the groups. The same procedure was applied to compare a group of children with CI to a group of hearing-age matched children with TH. Results: Children with CI performed significantly more poorly than children with TH matched on chronological age on a semantic fluency task and exhibited a significantly less structured semantic network. No significant difference in performance on a semantic fluency task was found between children with CI and children with TH matched on hearing-age. However, the structure of the semantic network differed significantly for the hearing age matched groups. Conclusions: Although the groups perform on the same level on a sematic fluency task, the semantic network for spoken language of children with CI is less structured compared to children with TH matched on hearing age. Reasons for this might be differences in the (perceptual) quality and the quantity of spoken language input.

scholarly journals Characteristics of Clustering and Switching in Verbal Fluency according to Healthy Elderly Group

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 630-640
Author(s):  
Juyeong Kim ◽  
Hyunjoo Choi
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Healthy Elderly ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Phonemic Verbal Fluency ◽  
Fluency Task

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of clusters and switches through verbal fluency tasks by different age groups among the elderly.Methods: Ninety-four healthy elderly adults participated in this study. The verbal fluency task consisted of semantic verbal fluency and phonemic verbal fluency. The categories of ‘animal’ and ‘supermarket’ were used for semantic fluency, and the categories ‘/k/’, ‘/o/’ and ‘/s/’ were used for phonemic fluency.Results: First, there was a significant difference between the age groups. The number of correct responses in the verbal fluency task decreased as age increased. Second, the mean cluster size for verbal fluency did not show a significant difference among groups in tasks of semantic and phonemic verbal fluency. Third, the number of switches showed a significant difference between groups in semantic and phonemic verbal fluency. In the post-analysis results of semantic fluency, a significant difference was found in the category of ‘animals’ between the young-old and old-old age group, and a significant difference was found in the number of switches in the category of ‘supermarket’ between the middle-old and old-old age group. Finally, the semantic fluency task showed the highest frequency of perseverative error, and the phonemic fluency task showed the highest frequency of other errors.Conclusion: These results of this study are meaningful in investigating characteristics of cluster and switch as well as the performance of correct rate through the verbal fluency tasks according to the elderly group.

The structure of L2 lexical-semantic networks as seen from a social network perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuefang Feng ◽  
Jie Liu
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Lexical Semantic ◽  
Fluency Task

Abstract This study employed a social network analysis tool to investigate the organization of L2 lexical-semantic networks. A total of 49 Chines EFL learners of English completed a semantic fluency task in English. A lexical-semantic network was established on the data collected from the semantic fluency task. We conducted a CONCOR analysis to distinguish the central words from the peripheral ones in the lexical-semantic network. The relevance of three distributional features to the centrality of the words in the L2 lexical-semantic network was examined respectively. In addition, we analyzed the general explanatory effect of each of the three features on centrality. The results based on the distributional features are significantly correlational and report positive explanatory effects. In addition, words of similar distributional features were found to connect in a way that reflects semantic feature effects. Finally, theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications of the findings were discussed.

scholarly journals Semantic, phonologic, and verb fluency in Huntington's disease

2007 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Jardim Azambuja ◽  
Monica Santoro Haddad ◽  
Marcia Radanovic ◽  
Egberto Reis Barbosa ◽  
Letícia Lessa Mansur
Keyword(s):  
Executive Functioning ◽  
Huntington's Disease ◽  
Huntington’S Disease ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Frontal Lobe Dysfunction ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Usual Evaluation ◽  
Fluency Task

Abstract Verbal fluency tasks have been identified as important indicators of executive functioning impairment in patients with frontal lobe dysfunction. Although the usual evaluation of this ability considers phonologic and semantic criteria, there is some evidence that fluency of verbs would be more sensitive in disclosing frontostriatal physiopathology since frontal regions primarily mediate retrieval of verbs. Huntington's disease usually affects these circuitries. Objective: To compare three types of verbal fluency task in the assessment of frontal-striatal dysfunction in HD subjects. Methods: We studied 26 Huntington's disease subjects, divided into two subgroups: mild (11) and moderate (15) along with 26 normal volunteers matched for age, gender and schooling, for three types of verbal fluency: phonologic fluency (F-A-S), semantic fluency and fluency of verbs. Results: Huntington's disease subjects showed a significant reduction in the number of words correctly generated in the three tasks when compared to the normal group. Both controls and Huntington's disease subjects showed a similar pattern of decreasing task performance with the greatest number of words being generated by semantic elicitation followed by verbs and lastly phonologic criteria. We did not find greater production of verbs compared with F-A-S and semantic conditions. Moreover, the fluency of verbs distinguished only the moderate group from controls. Conclusion: Our results indicated that phonologic and semantic fluency can be used to evaluate executive functioning, proving more sensitive than verb fluency. However, it is important to point out that the diverse presentations of Huntington's disease means that an extended sample is necessary for more consistent analysis of this issue.

scholarly journals Performance of Brazilian children on phonemic and semantic verbal fluency tasks

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 78-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helenice Charchat-Fichman ◽  
Rosinda Martins Oliveira ◽  
Andreza Morais da Silva
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Phonemic Fluency ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Effect Of Age ◽  
Fluency Task ◽  
Brazilian Children

Abstract The most used verbal fluency paradigms are semantic and letter fluency tasks. Studies suggest that these paradigms access semantic memory and executive function and are sensitive to frontal lobe disturbances. There are few studies in Brazilian samples on these paradigms. Objective: The present study investigated performance, and the effects of age, on verbal fluency tasks in Brazilian children. The results were compared with those of other studies, and the consistency of the scoring criteria data is presented. Methods: A sample of 119 children (7 to 10 years old) was submitted to the three phonemic fluency (F, A, M) tasks and three semantic fluency (animals, clothes, fruits) tasks. The results of thirty subjects were scored by two independent examiners. Results: A significant positive correlation was found between the scores calculated by the two independent examiners. Significant positive correlations were found between performance on the semantic fluency task and the phonemic fluency task. The effect of age was significant for both tasks, and a significant difference was found between the 7- and 9-year-old subjects and between the 7- and 10-year-old subjects. The 8-year-old group did not differ to any of the other age groups. Conclusion: The pattern of results was similar to that observed in previous Brazilian and international studies.

scholarly journals Structural Differences of the Semantic Network in Adolescents with Intellectual Disability

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Karin Nilsson ◽  
Lisa Palmqvist ◽  
Magnus Ivarsson ◽  
Anna Levén ◽  
Henrik Danielsson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Language Development ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
Clustering Coefficient ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
School Activities ◽  
Development Processes ◽  
Language Environment

The semantic network structure is a core aspect of the mental lexicon and is, therefore, a key to understanding language development processes. This study investigated the structure of the semantic network of adolescents with intellectual disability (ID) and children with typical development (TD) using network analysis. The semantic networks of the participants (nID = 66; nTD = 49) were estimated from the semantic verbal fluency task with the pathfinder method. The groups were matched on the number of produced words. The average shortest path length (ASPL), the clustering coefficient (CC), and the network’s modularity (Q) of the two groups were compared. A significantly smaller ASPL and Q and a significantly higher CC were found for the adolescents with ID in comparison with the children with TD. Reasons for this might be differences in the language environment and differences in cognitive skills. The quality and quantity of the language input might differ for adolescents with ID due to differences in school curricula and because persons with ID tend to engage in different out-of-school activities compared to TD peers. Future studies should investigate the influence of different language environments on the language development of persons with ID.

scholarly journals Does bilingual language control decline in older age?

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 86-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iva Ivanova ◽  
Mayra Murillo ◽  
Rosa I. Montoya ◽  
Tamar H. Gollan
Keyword(s):  
Flanker Task ◽  
Order Effect ◽  
Older Age ◽  
Order Effects ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Semantic Categories ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Language Control ◽  
Fluency Task

Abstract We investigated age-related decline of bilingual language control. Thirteen older and 13 younger bilinguals performed a verbal fluency task (completing the same letter and semantic categories in each language and switching languages after every category), and a non-linguistic flanker task. In letter fluency, bilinguals produced fewer correct responses after switching languages, suggesting inhibition of the previously-used language. However, this testing-order effect did not differ between groups and older bilinguals produced few wrong-language intrusions, implying intact ability to apply inhibition in older age. In contrast, age-related deficits in the flanker task were robust, implying dissociations between language control and domain-general executive control. In semantic fluency, there were no testing-order effects but older bilinguals produced more intrusions than younger bilinguals, and more intrusions than in letter fluency. Thus, bilinguals may flexibly modulate the degree of inhibition when they can benefit from semantic priming between languages, but less efficiently so in older age.

Introducing the Tactual Span: A New Task for Assessing Working Memory in the Teactile Modality

Assessment ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 107319112094992
Author(s):  
Eyal Heled ◽  
Shulamit Rotberg ◽  
Roman Yavich ◽  
A. Dan Hoofien
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Selective Attention ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Attention Task ◽  
Verbal Fluency Task ◽  
Span Tasks ◽  
Tactile Modality ◽  
Fluency Task ◽  
Skewness And Kurtosis

The span paradigm is commonly used to assess working memory (WM), predominantly through the visual and auditory routes and less often through the tactile modality. The current study aimed to validate the “Tactual Span”, a new task developed to evaluate WM in the tactile modality. Participants were 140 healthy young adults, who performed the Tactual Span alongside span tasks in three additional modalities (auditory, visual, and visuospatial), as well as a selective attention task and a semantic verbal fluency task. The Tactual Span and other span tasks were found to correlate, while correlations with the selective attention and semantic fluency tasks were largely nonsignificant, indicating good construct validity. Cronbach’s alpha for both stages as well as skewness and kurtosis were also adequate. An exploratory factor analysis for the forward stage showed that the Tactual Span and Visuospatial Span were loaded on one factor, whereas the Auditory and Visual Spans were loaded on another factor. In the backward stage, all span tasks were loaded on a single factor. The findings provide an initial indication that the Tactual Span task is a feasible and valid tool for assessing WM in the tactile modality.

scholarly journals Analyzing Knowledge Retrieval Impairments Associated with Alzheimer’s Disease Using Network Analyses

Complexity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey C. Zemla ◽  
Joseph L. Austerweil
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Memory Impairment ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Healthy Controls ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Healthy Individuals ◽  
Network Analyses ◽  
Patient Diagnosis ◽  
Fluency Task

A defining characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease is difficulty in retrieving semantic memories, or memories encoding facts and knowledge. While it has been suggested that this impairment is caused by a degradation of the semantic store, the precise ways in which the semantic store is degraded are not well understood. Using a longitudinal corpus of semantic fluency data (listing of items in a category), we derive semantic network representations of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and of healthy controls. We contrast our network-based approach with analyzing fluency data with the standard method of counting the total number of items and perseverations in fluency data. We find that the networks of Alzheimer’s patients are more connected and that those connections are more randomly distributed than the connections in networks of healthy individuals. These results suggest that the semantic memory impairment of Alzheimer’s patients can be modeled through the inclusion of spurious associations between unrelated concepts in the semantic store. We also find that information from our network analysis of fluency data improves prediction of patient diagnosis compared to traditional measures of the semantic fluency task.

scholarly journals Estimating semantic networks of groups and individuals from fluency data

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey C Zemla ◽  
Joseph L. Austerweil
Keyword(s):  
Memory Retrieval ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Estimation Method ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Semantic Fluency ◽  
Moderate Amount ◽  
Classic Theory ◽  
Network Estimation

One popular and classic theory of how the mind encodes knowledge is an as- sociative semantic network, where concepts and associations between concepts correspond to nodes and edges, respectively. A major issue in semantic network research is that there is no consensus among researchers as to the best method for estimating the network of an individual or group. We propose a novel method (dubbed U-INVITE) for estimating semantic networks from semantic fluency data (listing items from a category) based on a censored random walk model of mem- ory retrieval. We compare this method to several other methods in the literature for estimating networks from semantic fluency data. In simulations, we find that U- INVITE can recover semantic networks with low error rates given only a moderate amount of data. U-INVITE is the only known method derived from a psychologi- cally plausible process model of memory retrieval and one of two known methods that are consistent estimators of this process: if semantic memory retrieval is con- sistent with this process, the procedure will eventually estimate the true network (given enough data). We conduct the first exploration of different methods for esti- mating psychologically-valid semantic networks by comparing people’s similarity judgments of edges estimated by each network estimation method. We conclude with a discussion of best practices for estimating networks from fluency data.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document