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EEG states of the brain, information processing, and schizophrenic primary symptoms.

The electroencephalographic (EEG) reactivity to auditory information (the central component of the orienting reaction) was used to examine brain states underlying information processing in acute and recovered medication-free schizophrenics and matched controls. EEG reactivity was assessed as information-induced changes of parameters extracted from power spectral frequency analysis of the ongoing EEG. EEG reactivity in controls and schizophrenics in remission was largely similar. Acute schizophrenics showed a deviant (ectropic) reactivity, which consisted of changes within the 2-8 Hz band, and of either severely reduced or absent response in the 8-13 Hz (alpha) band. These results indicate an ectropic brain state during cognitive processing of received information during the period of acute schizophrenic symptomatology.

Acute Disease↗

Working memory and information processing speed in children with myelomeningocele and shunted hydrocephalus: analysis of the children's paced auditory serial addition test.

Working memory and information processing speed were examined in children with myelomeningocele and shunted hydrocephalus using the Children's Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (CHIPASAT). The CHIPASAT was administered to 31 children with myelomeningocele and shunted hydrocephalus and 27 healthy siblings, all between 8 and 15 years of age. They also completed other standardized measures of working memory and processing speed. Children with myelomeningocele made fewer correct responses than siblings, although the magnitude of group differences declined as the rate of stimulus presentation increased. Children with myelomeningocele also made fewer consecutive correct responses and were more likely to provide correct but nonconsecutive responses, suggesting that they responded in a way that circumvents the working memory demands of the task. Standardized measures of processing speed and working memory accounted for significant variance in CHIPASAT performance after controlling for age, group membership, math skill, and general intellectual functioning. The results indicate that children with myelomeningocele and shunted hydrocephalus display deficits in working memory and information processing speed, and suggest that the CHIPASAT may provide a valid measure of these skills.

Adolescent↗

Evolutionary psychology: counting babies or studying information-processing mechanisms.

Evolutionary psychology focuses on the study of adaptations. Its practitioners put little credence in the study of reproductive success in recent and current environments, and argue for an information-processing, cost-benefit conception of adaptation. Because ancestral and current environments differ, it is necessary to distinguish between innate and operational adaptations and between concurrently contingent and developmentally contingent behaviors. These distinctions lead to an evolutionary classification of behaviors into true pathologies, pseudopathologies, quasinormal behaviors, and adaptive-culturally-variable behaviors. I argue that a complete study of the functioning of a behavioral adaptation involves modeling ancestral selection pressures, cross-cultural research, experimental studies of mental processes, and studies of the proximate biological correlates of information-processing adaptations. Finally, I claim that evolutionary psychology can help us avoid making both naturalistic and moralistic fallacies.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Persisting negative symptoms and information-processing deficits in schizophrenia: implications for subtyping.

To test the hypothesis that schizophrenic patients with persisting negative symptoms have stable information-processing impairments compared with schizophrenic patients without persisting negative symptoms, 20 chronic schizophrenic outpatients were trichotomously subgrouped on the basis of the level of negative symptoms that they displayed across multiple rating periods over a 1-year period. Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale assessments of negative symptoms were used to assign subjects into either an operationally defined persisting negative symptom (PNS), transient negative symptom (TNS), or no negative symptom (NNS) subgroup. The level and pattern of these subgroups' performance on a visual information-processing task, the Span of Apprehension Test (SPAN), were compared. Although the three groups did not differ statistically in level of SPAN performance during a drug-free baseline, the PNS group had significantly poorer SPAN performance than the other two groups at the 1-year followup assessment. The SPAN performance of the TNS and NNS groups improved while the SPAN performance of the PNS group did not improve over the 1-year followup period.

Adult↗

Information processing deficits associated with developmental coordination disorder: a meta-analysis of research findings.

A meta-analysis was conducted to identify information processing factors that characterise children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). A total of 50 studies yielded 374 effect sizes based on 983 DCD and 987 control children. A mild generalised performance deficit was indicated, since motor-impaired children were inferior on almost all measures of information processing. There were, however, several areas where their deficiencies were more pronounced. The greatest deficiency was in visual-spatial processing. This was evident regardless of whether or not the tasks involved a motor component. Most other deficiencies were in the small-to-moderate range and included kinaesthetic and cross-modal processing. The findings support the notion that perceptual problems, particularly in the visual modality, are associated with difficulties in motor coordination.

Child↗

Modeling interdependencies between information processes and communication paths in hospitals.

OBJECTIVES: For planning hospital information systems it is important to recognize the interrelation between business processes and the communication needs between supporting application systems. We therefore present an approach to model, visualize and analyze those interdependencies. METHODS: The approach is based on the concepts defined in 3LGM2, a meta-model to describe health information systems (HIS). An information process is defined as a sequence of functions using or updating information; a communication path as a sequence of communication links between interfaces belonging to application systems. The search for communication paths belonging to an information process is interpreted as an all-pairs shortest-paths problem. To solve this problem the Floyd-Warshall algorithm is applied. RESULTS: The resulting algorithm has been implemented as function of the 3LGM2 tool, a tool to create 3LGM2 compliant models. With it, it is possible to interactively define information processes at the domain layer and to analyze step by step whether the infrastructure at the logical tool layer is sufficient to communicate necessary data between application systems. CONCLUSIONS: The presented approach enables the representation and analysis of dependencies between information processes and communication paths. With it, the HIS architecture is directly associated with the business needs. This is an important condition for the systematic planning of hospital information systems.

Algorithms↗

Early visual information processing and the Defence Mechanism Test in schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine whether impairment in visual information processing measured by backward masking was related to high threshold values in the Defence Mechanism Test (DMT) in patients with schizophrenia. METHOD: A total of 20 patients with schizophrenia according to DSM-IV, most of whom were out-patients, were studied with backward masking and a modified version of the DMT (DMTm). RESULTS: Nine of the patients showed an impairment in backward masking. There was a relationship between impairment in backward masking and the DMTm with either no or a late C-phase (correct perception in DMTm) in the first series, and a late perception of the peripheral person in the second series. There was no relationship for the other 14 threshold values. The patients did not have high threshold values in the DMTm as was expected. CONCLUSION: In this sample consisting mainly of out-patients, there were few relationships between impairment in backward masking and high threshold values in DMTm. Their visual information processing was not as disturbed as expected. Most previous studies on both backward masking and the DMT in patients with schizophrenia have been conducted among in-patients, who could be expected to be more disturbed than the out-patients in the present study. The results of studies on in-patients with schizophrenia must not be generalized to include out-patients, and vice versa.

Adult↗

Speed-accuracy decomposition yields a sudden insight into all-or-none information processing.

The existence of discrete all-or-none information processing has often been assumed as a basis for stage models and also as an important characteristic of nonlinear connectionist models; however, there has been little or no hard empirical evidence supporting the existence of this phenomenon. In search of such evidence, we applied speed-accuracy decomposition (Meyer et al., 1988), a technique for detecting partial response information, to the examination of the time-course of processing in a (Gestalt) insight-like task, namely, anagram solution. This task was chosen because the Gestalt psychologists conjectured that insight is a sudden, discrete phenomenon. Supporting this view, we found little or no evidence of partial information in two experiments, thereby providing what may be the strongest evidence to date for all-or-none processing.

Adult↗

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): information processing in the treatment of trauma.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an efficacious and efficient treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This article provides a brief overview of the findings of 20 controlled-outcome studies and describes Shapiro's Adaptive Information Processing model. This model posits that pathology results when distressing experiences are processed inadequately and hypothesizes that EMDR accelerates information processing, resulting in the adaptive resolution of traumatic memories. A detailed description of the eight phases of treatment highlights the procedures, assumptions, and clinical observations that currently guide EMDR clinical practice. A case study, with an in-session transcript, illustrates the application of EMDR to address the past events that have laid the groundwork for dysfunction, the present circumstances that elicit distress, and skills acquisition needed for adaptive functioning.

Adult↗

Information processing in neural networks by means of controlled dynamic regimes.

This paper is concerned with the modeling of neural systems regarded as information processing entities. I investigate the various dynamic regimes that are accessible in neural networks considered as nonlinear adaptive dynamic systems. The possibilities of obtaining steady, oscillatory or chaotic regimes are illustrated with different neural network models. Some aspects of the dependence of the dynamic regimes upon the synaptic couplings are examined. I emphasize the role that the various regimes may play to support information processing abilities. I present an example where controlled transient evolutions in a neural network, are used to model the regulation of motor activities by the cerebellar cortex.

Cerebellum↗

Relational information processing of novel unrelated actions by infants.

Declarative memory in infants is often assessed via deferred imitation. Not much is known about the information processing basis of the memory effect found in these experiments. While in the typical deferred imitation study the order of actions remains the same during demonstration and retrieval, in two experiments with n=30 respective n=25, 10- and 11-month-old infants, the order of novel unrelated actions in demonstration and retrieval was varied (same, reversed, mixed). This allowed a separation of item-specific from item-relational information processing. In both experiments best memory performance was found when the order of target actions remained the same during encoding and recall, demonstrating that infants seem to rely on item-specific as well as item-relational information which has to be ad hoc constructed while encoding.

Attention↗

Wireless access to a pharmaceutical database: a demonstrator for data driven Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) applications in medical information processing.

BACKGROUND: The Wireless Application Protocol technology implemented in newer mobile phones has built-in facilities for handling much of the information processing needed in clinical work. OBJECTIVES: To test a practical approach we ported a relational database of the Danish pharmaceutical catalogue to Wireless Application Protocol using open source freeware at all steps. METHODS: We used Apache 1.3 web software on a Linux server. Data containing the Danish pharmaceutical catalogue were imported from an ASCII file into a MySQL 3.22.32 database using a Practical Extraction and Report Language script for easy update of the database. Data were distributed in 35 interrelated tables. Each pharmaceutical brand name was given its own card with links to general information about the drug, active substances, contraindications etc. Access was available through 1) browsing therapeutic groups and 2) searching for a brand name. The database interface was programmed in the server-side scripting language PHP3. RESULTS: A free, open source Wireless Application Protocol gateway to a pharmaceutical catalogue was established to allow dial-in access independent of commercial Wireless Application Protocol service providers. The application was tested on the Nokia 7110 and Ericsson R320s cellular phones. CONCLUSIONS: We have demonstrated that Wireless Application Protocol-based access to a dynamic clinical database can be established using open source freeware. The project opens perspectives for a further integration of Wireless Application Protocol phone functions in clinical information processing: Global System for Mobile communication telephony for bilateral communication, asynchronous unilateral communication via e-mail and Short Message Service, built-in calculator, calendar, personal organizer, phone number catalogue and Dictaphone function via answering machine technology. An independent Wireless Application Protocol gateway may be placed within hospital firewalls, which may be an advantage with respect to security. However, if Wireless Application Protocol phones are to become effective tools for physicians, special attention must be paid to the limitations of the devices. Input tools of Wireless Application Protocol phones should be improved, for instance by increased use of speech control.

Clinical Pharmacy Information Systems↗

Visual information processing in infants with focal brain lesions.

Visual information processing for faces were tested by means of the Fagan test of infant intelligence (FTII) in six infants of approximately 12 months of age affected by congenital unilateral brain lesions. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to determine the side and size of the lesions. In addition to the FTII, all infants were submitted to a psychometric evaluation using the Griffiths scales. Visual acuity, visual field, and ocular motility were also assessed. Three infants showed damage in the left hemisphere and three in the right. The severity of the lesions, as revealed by MRI scan, was similar in the two groups. All infants except one had normal or borderline cognitive scores on the Griffiths scales. Conversely, four infants showed abnormal results on the FTII, which were not associated with the severity of the lesions, psychometric scores, or the presence of visual deficits. A preference for stimuli presented on the left side of the screen was found, independent of the side of the lesions. This effect was stronger for novel stimuli. The results of this study confirm the importance of early assessment of neuropsychological functions in infants with focal brain lesions.

Cerebral Hemorrhage↗

Stimulus-response profile analysis: a comprehensive, quantitative approach to the study of sensory coding and information processing.

In order to understand the coding and information processing capabilities of mechanosensory neurons, it is necessary to examine stimulus--response relationships under a wide variety of stimulus conditions, using a comprehensive set of quantitative analytic procedures. We employ the methodology of stimulus--response profile analysis, which is based on 4 principles: (1) the use of a broad-based battery of quantitatively controlled mechanical stimuli; (2) maintenance of comprehensive records of experiments; (3) detailed, quantitative analysis of single-unit responses; and (4) the application of these principles uniformly and consistently to all units studied. In addition to conventional graphical portrayals of single-unit activity, we employ a set of quantitative response indices, each of which represents a particular aspect of a unit's overall responsiveness. The distribution of a response index for the entire sample of neurons examined in a particular population offers insight into the manner in which a specific stimulus feature is presented within that population. The distributions of response indices obtained from different neural populations can be compared statistically in order to evaluate interpopulation differences in stimulus-response relationships. This comprehensive, quantitative approach is capable of demonstrating significant, although subtle, interpopulation differences which are not revealed by more cursory, qualitative methods.

Animals↗

Information processing analysis of the Chevreul pendulum illusion.

An information processing investigation was performed to quantify the Chevreul pendulum effect: the tendency of a small pendulum, when suspended from the hand and imaginatively concentrated on, to oscillate seemingly of its own accord. Using a time exposure photographic measurement technique, electronically automated visual and auditory imaginal prompts were presented to the subject during imaginal processing tasks. It was found that the pendulum effect was enhanced when vision of actual pendulum oscillations was permitted and visual or auditory spatially oscillating stimuli were present. Visual spatially oscillating stimuli were superior to their auditory counterparts. Results were discussed in terms of ideomotor and visual capture interpretations of signal and imaginal processing.

Adolescent↗

Multidimensional latent-construct analysis of children's social information processing patterns: correlations with aggressive behavior problems.

Social information processing (SIP) patterns were conceptualized in orthogonal domains of process and context and measured through responses to hypothetical vignettes in a stratified sample of 387 children (50% boys; 49% minority) from 4 geographical sites followed from kindergarten through 3rd grade. Multidimensional, latent-construct, confirmatory factor analyses supported the within-construct internal consistency, cross-construct discrimination, and multidimensionality of SIP patterns. Contrasts among nested structural equation models indicated that SIP constructs significantly predicted children's aggressive behavior problems as measured by later teacher reports. The findings support the multidimensional construct validity of children's social cognitive patterns and the relevance of SIP patterns in children's aggressive behavior problems.

Aggression↗

Selective effects of low-dose dopamine D1 and D2 receptor antagonists on rat information processing.

It is well established that the dopaminergic system influences simple reaction time (RT) performance. However, the role of this system in more complex information processing remains to be clarified. The present study was aimed at addressing this issue. To this end, we used an inferential method that relies on choice RT procedures and allows one to identify information processing stages in both humans and rats. Long-Evans rats responded to lateral visual cues (left or right). Two task factors, signal intensity and foreperiod duration, were manipulated. Low doses of two pharmacological agents, SCH 23390 (a D1 receptor antagonist; 0.015 and 0.025 micromol/kg) and eticlopride (a D2 receptor antagonist; 0.01 and 0.02 micromol/kg), were administrated systemically. Both drugs increased choice RT: eticlopride interacted with signal intensity on RT, showing that D2 receptors mediate at least the sensory stage of stimulus preprocessing. In addition, eticlopride interacted with signal intensity on omission rate, thereby suggesting an involvement of D2 receptors in attentional processes; and SCH 23390 interacted with foreperiod duration on RT, indicating that D1 receptors specifically mediate the response adjustment stage. The effect of this drug on RT rests entirely in its interaction with foreperiod duration, allowing us to conclude that this D1 antagonist affects the response adjustment stage while sparing all other processing stages.

Animals↗

Physiological self-regulation and information processing in infancy: cardiac vagal tone and habituation.

This study investigates the role of physiological self-regulation (cardiac vagal tone) in information processing (habituation) in 81 infants. Nucleus ambiguus vagal tone (Vna, a measure of respiratory sinus arrhythmia) was used to index cardiac vagal tone. Physiological self-regulation was operationalized as the change in Vna from a baseline period of measurement to habituation. Decreases in Vna consistently related to habituation efficiency, operationalized as accumulated looking time (ALT), in all infants twice at 2 months and twice at 5 months; however, this relation was accounted for by infants who met an habituation criterion on each task. Among habituators, shorter lookers also had greater Vna suppression during habituation. Within-age and between-age suppression of vagal tone predicted ALT, but ALT did not predict suppression of vagal tone. Physiological self-regulation provided by the vagal system appears to play a role in information processing in infancy as indexed by habituation.

Child Development↗