Cognitive underpinnings of multidimensional Japanese literacy and its impact on higher-level language skills

This study aimed to identify the cognitive underpinnings of Japanese kanji abilities and clarify the contributions of kanji acquisition to the development of higher-level language skills based on a three-dimensional view of kanji abilities encompassing reading accuracy, writing accuracy, and semantic comprehension. First, a series of regression analyses was used to identify the multifactorial models of each dimension of Japanese kanji acquisition. These models suggest that, among basic cognitive skills, naming speed, visuospatial processing, and syntactic processing underpin kanji abilities in a dimension-specific manner, whereas phonological processing is a common factor. Second, although all the dimensions of kanji abilities predicted acquired verbal knowledge equally, writing skills on the text level, measured as idea density, were only predicted by the writing dimension (indirectly via acquired knowledge). Our findings represent the first evidence of the dimension-specific relationships of the three dimensions of Japanese kanji abilities with their cognitive predictors, as well as with higher-level language skills. They suggest the importance of handwriting acquisition during school years for the development of language skills through to adulthood. Finally, taking the seminal “Nun study,” which suggests that higher idea density is protective against dementia, into account, we propose a theoretical framework for the lifelong trajectory of literacy acquisition.

A densidade de ideias e a complexidade gramatical na avaliação da produção escrita em português L2

Advanced L2 written production assessment is difficult to quantify as are learning goals established for this competence in the same level. Correction is not enough. Quality in writing is expected to translate into lexical precision and richness, as well as sentence complexity. In order to measure these characteristics of sophisticated writing, Idea Density and Grammatical Complexity are proposed as assessment parameters as they were explored by Snowdon et al. (1996) and by Kemper et al. (2001) in the Nun Study (Snowdon 2001). Its adoption to the advanced Portuguese L2 learning context (C1/C2) underlied the study of sentences produced in two writing tasks: a synthesis and a writing prompt. First, results were highly variable due to the heterogeneity of the group of participants. Both measures were found to be correlated in both writing tasks, which led to the conclusion that participants who write with lexical precision and richness also produce higher complexity sentences. Lastly, the results confirmed that reading has an influence on writing quality, insofar as the students who usually read as the ones who got the highest scores in both parameters.

Cognitive and Psychopathological Profile on Catholic Nuns in Puerto Rico: An exploratory study

Introduction: The vocation of Catholic nun has spread virtually throughout the world for hundreds of years. The purpose of this pioneer nun study in Puerto Rico is to generate a comprehensive cognitive and psychopathological profile in a particular sample that usually shares a similar environment and lifestyle. Even though, nuns have been studied in the United States and other parts of the world, no known study conducted with Puerto Rican nuns has been found in local academic databases explored in the last ten years using the subject keywords (i.e., Puerto Rican Nuns) in data search. Method: The sample consists of 25 female catholic nuns, residents in Puerto Rico, with a median age of 60.96 years old (SD= 17.594; RANGE= 61). A Non-probability sampling method was utilized to retrieve the participants. Instruments: Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), Beck Hopelessness Inventory (BHS), Symptom Checklist 90-R and Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Findings: Significant findings among BDI-II results (t=2.377, p<.05), BHS results (t=34.671, p<.05) and Mini-mental examination (t=16.613, p<.05). An ANOVA was conducted evaluate significant differences among the subscales of the 90-Symptom Checklist Significant differences were found. Conclusion: Results suggest that symptoms of psychopathology are present predominantly at a minimal level. However, mild to moderate results were also found. Nuns in the sample showed high cognitive functioning and were capable of performing the tasks assigned. Future research may include a bigger sample and comparisons among cloistered and apostolic nuns. A mixed methodology is suggested.

Sequential Importance Sampling for Logistic Regression Model

Logistic regression is one of the most popular models to classify in data science, and in general, it is easy to use. However, in order to conduct a goodness-of-fit test, we cannot apply asymptotic methods if we have sparse datasets. In the case, we have to conduct an exact conditional inference via a sampler, such as Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) or Sequential Importance Sampling (SIS). In this chapter, the authors investigate the rejection rate of the SIS procedure on a multiple logistic regression models with categorical covariates. Using tools from algebra, they show that in general SIS can have a very high rejection rate even though we apply Linear Integer Programming (IP) to compute the support of the marginal distribution for each variable. More specifically, the semigroup generated by the columns of the design matrix for a multiple logistic regression has infinitely many “holes.” They end with application of a hybrid scheme of MCMC and SIS to NUN study data on Alzheimer disease study.

The Nun Study and Alzheimer’s disease: Quality of vocation as a potential protective factor?

Data from the Nun Study, the most famous longitudinal epidemiology of Alzheimer’s disease to date, are analyzed and reformulated in terms of Max Weber’s discussion of the centrality of beruf – “calling” – fulfilling a life task in pursuit of a vocation. Qualitative differences in the Nuns’ vocations are uncovered, which are correlated to their resilience to dementia. Extrapolating, we argue that Alzheimer’s disease and the dementia reputed to it should be understood as a social pathology of contemporary civilization related to the loss of moral foundations from which coherent, meaningful life-projects can be conducted.