Abstract: Twenty three children who had been treated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) were evaluated intellectually using the British Ability Scales. Their treatment included early cranial irradiation, intrathecal chemotherapy, and systemic chemotherapy. Nineteen children who had been treated for various types of solid tumours (ST), had undergone related chemotherapy, and had received irradiation to sites of the body other than the cranium were used as controls. In addition, patients' siblings were assessed and their scores statistically corrected to produce a best estimate of the patients' pre-morbid degree of intellectual functioning. The results showed intellectual deficits after treatment in both patient groups, but these were consistently larger in the ALL group, particularly for the higher functions of intelligence. Intellectual deficit in ALL patients did not show immediately after radiotherapy but became progressively more apparent some time afterwards and particularly in younger children. In contrast, in the ST group, intellectual deficits seemed to diminish over time, and the age at radiotherapy was not a critical factor.

Abstract: The clinical‐research literature relating to the abused child is critically reviewed. Included are demographic and epidemiological studies, behavioral studies, and studies of the cognitive/intellectual functioning of these children. Research which suggests that characteristics of the child contribute to abuse is also presented, along with suggestions for further research and prevention/treatment.

Abstract: Hair lead content, intelligence tests, school achievement, and motor impairment assessments were obtained from 149 public school children aged 5 to 16. Hair lead concentration significantly discriminated between groups and significantly predicted IQ scores, independent of group classifications. Regression analyses showed a significant negative correlation between lead and intellectual functioning, even in the normal to gifted IQ range. These results demonstrate a continuous inverse relationship between intelligence and relatively low levels of body lead in which the higher levels of cognitive function are affected before any signs of gross motor impairment are seen.

Abstract: The Motor-Free Visual Perception Test (MVPT) was administered to 15 chronic schizophrenic patients and 15 normal controls, ages 40 to 60, to see whether, perceptual deficits would be found on non-motor tasks Groups significantly affected performance on the MVPT, as did occupational status In the schizophrenic group only, efficiency of intellectual functioning was positively related to how well they performed on the MVPT Age, educational level, and IQ had no significant impact on functioning on this test in either group The schizophrenic patients made more errors on the more complex operations of the MVPT, and the only significant group differences in percentage of subjects' own errors was in figure-ground The MVPT may be useful in screening for visual-perceptual deficits in adult schizophrenic patients

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the relationships among brain organization, maturation rate, and the development of verbal and nonverbal ability. There is considerable evidence that the two sexes differ in their intellectual characteristics with mature males being relatively more able spatially and mature females, more able verbally. Although there is a sizable body of research that implicates the importance of sociocultural factors in determining these sex differences, a variety of observations suggest that biological factors are also involved. The plausibility of biological factors in relation to the origin of sex differences in ability is suggested by a variety of observations. It is also true that normal males and females have differences in sex chromosome complement which, hypothetically at least, could be responsible for their differing intellectual characteristics. This chapter attempts to integrate a number of different empirical findings and theoretical propositions bearing on individual differences in intellectual functioning. It analyzes sex differences in ability for verbal and nonverbal tasks, genetic processes governed by the sex chromosomes, and functional hemispheric organization. In each case, relationships among these areas are examined in the context of developmental changes from early in life to maturity.

Abstract: The maturity and style of problem solving of learning disabled children was compared to that of children not learning disabled. Of the LD group, those labeled as hyperactive were compared with those without such a label. Thirty-one children participated in the study. Each child was administered several tests of intellectual functioning, conceptual tempo, conservation, and conceptual strategy, the emphasis being on assessment of their cognitive style rather than on their acquisition of new information or the use of attentional skill. Teachers rated each child on a variety of behavioral, emotional, and social scales. Results indicated that LD children performed less well than the non-LD children on tasks requiring internal strategies or plans. With one exception, hyperactive and nonhyperactive LD children performed similarly; the hyperactive LD children did use a less mature strategy than the nonhyperactive LD children in one conceptual style task. Across groups, children with more behavioral problems also ...

Abstract: The effect of vision changes commonly associated with aging on intellectual performance is a relatively neglected topic in the literature. The purpose of this article is to review common visual changes with age and examine what effects they have on one's ability to function. In addition, variables related to intellectual functioning and their relationship with aging will be discussed.

Abstract: Relationships between intellectual functioning and problem-solving among aged persons were viewed from several vantage points. The Cattell-Horn theory of fluid and crystallized abilities provided t...

Abstract: In psychiatric literature there is a lack of interest in the psychodynamics of mildly retarded and borderline intelligence adults, despite the fact that these patients are known to be plagued by emotional problems and that their psychic conflicts, mobilization of defenses, and neurotic/psychotic solutions often represent a model of psychodynamic transparency. The authors discuss the special problems of development and adjustment to the community of these patients, and provide four case studies with psychodynamic formulations.

Abstract: At Rockland Psychiatric Center 60 newly admitted (and readmitted) young adult chronic patients were given tests of intellectual functioning and academic achievement three weeks after admission. The majority of these patients (83 percent) had belownormal IQs and more than half were found to be functionally illiterate. The authors point out that such patients require intensive socialization training and remedial education if they are to survive in the community.

Abstract: Traditionally, neuropsychologists have been mainly concerned with the evaluation and study of neurological conditions creating impairment in intellectual functioning. They have tended to concentrate largely on the brain itself and have viewed most problems of concern to them as occurring within the cranium. However, neuropsychologists are becoming increasingly involved in the evaluation of patients who suffer from diseases that may affect any part of the body.

Abstract: The concept of developmentally delayed children was introduced in the Soviet defectological literature in 1966 with the publication of M. Pevzner's book entitled Children with Developmental Deviations. This column reviews recent studies that compare the clinical characteristics of developmentally delayed, mentally retarded, and average children. A number of Soviet defectologists have studied attention, memory, and intellectual functioning of developmentally delayed children, as well as educational potential and performance. Verbal facility of developmentally delayed children has been reported by numerous investigators as being inferior to that of average children. The Soviet defectological literature indicates that students called developmentally delayed are in many respects similar to those called learning disabled in the United States.

Abstract: Intellectual dysfunction, usually involving short-term memory, abstract reasoning, visuomotor coordination, intellectual flexibility, and spatial reasoning, is a well-documented finding among alcohol imbibers of various drinking styles. Despite the diversity of groups examined and the attempted control of variables other than alcohol consumption, little concensus has been reached with regard to the chronology of dysfunction (as related to lifetime drinking style, duration of alcoholism, quantity consumed per session, or type of potable). In many instances, diet, age, and even sex have outweighed the relative influence of alcohol in the degree of intellectual dysfunction. Morphologically, brain changes tend to be in the anterior/basal areas and may involve the third ventricle, diencephalic areas, and other focal variations. Cerebellar changes also are not uncommon yet may reflect a subgroup of alcoholics rather than a generalised trend. Generally, many intellectual deficits partially rebound rapidly within the first two or three weeks after cessation of drinking, with perhaps modest further improvement if sobriety is sustained for several months. Because of the extreme heterogeneity of the alcoholic population and the potent effect of ancillary variables upon measures of intellectual functioning, control and matching of demographic factors is a paramount consideration. Demographic variables of primary concern include age, sex, socio-economic status, education, duration of alcoholism, quantity of alcohol consumed per session, diet, psychotropic medications, secondary psychiatric diagnoses, secondary medical diagnoses, exact duration of abstinence, and prior exposure to psychometric instruments. Language: en

Abstract: This chapter will begin by stating the proposition that there is no substantial decline in intellectual function with advancing age except in the case of those elderly individuals who acquire diseases of the central nervous system. Thus, many elderly people may experience deterioration of intellectual functioning from a previously higher level, but not simply because they are elderly. The more fundamental reason is that, as one grows older, the probability of acquiring a disease of the central nervous system increases. The contrary view, also stated in an extreme form, is that following a peak period during early adulthood, intellectual abilities enter into a slow decline. This view was made popular through Wechsler’s (1944) well-known curve of variations of intelligence scores and vital capacity with age. Thus, age may explain nothing or it may explain everything.

Abstract: Serum immunoglobulin levels for IgA, IgE, IgG, and IgM were measured in 13 institutionalized, profoundly mentally retarded individuals and for 20 retarded and 29 intellectually average noninstitutionalized individuals. A significant elevation in IgG was observed for the retarded groups as compared with the intellectually average group. There was a significant inverse relationship between IgG and level of intellectual functioning. The elevated IgG is suggestive of the findings with auto-immune diseases and warrants further investigation.

Abstract: In the past, psychologists have looked to the deaf as a source of data in developing and testing hypotheses about the role of language in cognitive functioning. The most widely known and debated work along these lines was that undertaken by Furth in the 1960’s (e.g. Furth, 1966; 1971). Furth argued that his studies proved that deaf children with no language showed delayed but not deviant intellectual functioning. Using a range of Piagetian tasks, he found that deaf subjects achieved normal, concrete operational thinking, although they did so some years later than is usual for hearing people. Furth concluded that deafness does not lead to grossly impaired intelligence.

Abstract: The application of group cognitive-behavioral therapy to depressed geriatric outpatients is illustrated through case examples. Age changes in intellectual functioning may cause the therapy to proceed more slowly than expected and may make behavioral components the most useful aspects of the treatment for some people. Health status may affect the assessment of severity of depression as well as the pace of the treatment. Differences in cultural and educational experience may make it more difficult for the group to become cohesive. Passivity and negative stereotypes of aging need to be actively confronted.

Abstract: The American Association of Mental Deficiency defines mental retardation as “sub-average general intellectual functioning which originates during the developmental period and is associated with impairment in adaptive behavior.”