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Results for “Imitative Behavior”

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At least 613 records · Page 34Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Play and imitation skills in the diagnosis of autism in young children.

Play behaviors and motor imitation skills of 91 children between the ages of 3 and 6 years were investigated to determine their utility in distinguishing autism from mental retardation and other communication disorders. The performance of 22 autistic children was compared with that of 15 mentally retarded, 15 hearing-impaired, 19 language-impaired, and 20 non-handicapped children. Play behaviors were assessed using structured observations of free-play activities, and imitation skills were measured using a set of 12 individually administered tasks. The autistic group spent less total time interacting with toys and using toys appropriately, engaged in fewer functional play acts, and obtained lower imitation scores compared with all other groups. Discriminant function analysis revealed that the latter three variables discriminated the autistic children from the nonautistic handicapped children, with motor imitation emerging as the most important differentiating measure. These results suggest that measuring play and imitation skills may be useful in the clinical diagnosis of autism.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed2005

Peer effects in drug use and sex among college students.

Past research suggests that congregating delinquent youth increases their likelihood of problem behavior. We test for analogous peer effects in the drug use and sexual behavior of male (n = 279) and female (n = 435) college students, using data on the characteristics of first-year roommates to whom they were randomly assigned. We find that males who reported binge drinking in high school drink much more in college if assigned a roommate who also binge drank in high school than if assigned a nonbinge-drinking roommate. No such multiplier effect is observed for females, nor are multiplier effects observed for marijuana use or sexual behavior for either males or females. Students who did not engage in these behaviors in high school do not appear to be affected by their roommates' high school behavior.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Facial EMG responses to dynamic emotional facial expressions in boys with disruptive behavior disorders.

Based on the assumption that facial mimicry is a key factor in emotional empathy, and clinical observations that children with disruptive behavior disorders (DBD) are weak empathizers, the present study explored whether DBD boys are less facially responsive to facial expressions of emotions than normal controls. Facial electromyographic (EMG) activity in the zygomaticus major and corrugator supercilii muscle regions, and heart rate activity were studied in 22 clinically referred 8-12-year-old DBD boys and 22 age-matched normal controls during exposure to dynamic happy and angry expressions. Dispositional emotional empathy was assessed by a self-report questionnaire for children. The happy and angry facial expressions evoked distinct facial EMG response patterns, with increased zygomaticus muscle activity to happy expressions and increased corrugator muscle activity to angry expressions. The corrugator (but not the zygomaticus) muscle response pattern was less pronounced for DBD boys than the normal controls. Attending to the emotional expressions was associated with equivalent cardiac deceleration in both groups, reflecting a similar orienting/attention response. Lower empathy scores were obtained for DBD boys than for normal controls. In conclusion, facial mimicry responses to angry facial expressions were subnormal in DBD boys, which may be a sign of a deficient early component in the process of emotional empathy, and thus play a role in impaired empathic responding.

Affect↗
PubMed2006

[Media coverage on suicide in Nuremberg's daily papers--frequency and form of the reporting before and during media-intervention with guidelines].

BACKGROUND: As one of its suicide preventive actions, the "Nuremberg Alliance Against Depression" has started cooperation with local media in 2001 by implementing a 14-item-mediaguide concerning a more sensible way of suicide-reporting to prevent copy-cat suicides. The effects of this mediaguide on the reporting are being evaluated. METHODS: A systematic recording of all suicide reports during 2000 (Baseline) and 2001 (first intervention year) was performed for three regional dailies in Nuremberg. A comparison of the reporting regarding the frequency, distribution and some qualitative aspects between baseline and intervention year as well as to a control-medium from Würzburg was carried out. RESULTS: Two out of three dailies in Nuremberg show a noticeable reduction in the numbers of articles on suicides. Compared to the baseline and control-medium one of the decreases is statistically significant. The results of the third newspaper, however, indicated an opposite direction, stating a significant increase in the number of reports. CONCLUSIONS: Crucial criterion for a mediaguide's favourable influence on the suicide-reporting is the willingness of the main editors in charge at the local dailies to be engaged and willing to cooperate. This can be achieved only through good personal contact and relationship to the project.

Cooperative Behavior↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Toward a curriculum for the profoundly retarded, multiply handicapped child.

An approach to formulating programmes for the profoundly retarded child is described. It is suggested that the basis for programming should be an analysis of the child's ability to operate on, and find out about, his environment. This analysis can be approached by asking questions about blocks to development, needs and preferences, socialization and communication and play and sensori-motor coordination.

Child↗
PubMed1975

Peer behavior conceptualized as a variable influencing infant and toddler development.

It is hypothesized that interaction between infants may serve to facilitate their overall behavioral development, particularly if the environment is structured to maximize the developmental quality of the interaction. The developmental literature, which has largely ignorned the potential value of infant peer interaction is reviewed, and several lines of psychological theory and investigation are cited in support of the hypothesis. Development of a technology for enhancing infant interaction is proposed, and initial research questions are suggested.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1971

Personality.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Aggression↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Neural circuits involved in the recognition of actions performed by nonconspecifics: an FMRI study.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to assess the cortical areas active during the observation of mouth actions performed by humans and by individuals belonging to other species (monkey and dog). Two types of actions were presented: biting and oral communicative actions (speech reading, lip-smacking, barking). As a control, static images of the same actions were shown. Observation of biting, regardless of the species of the individual performing the action, determined two activation foci (one rostral and one caudal) in the inferior parietal lobule and an activation of the pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus and the adjacent ventral premotor cortex. The left rostral parietal focus (possibly BA 40) and the left premotor focus were very similar in all three conditions, while the right side foci were stronger during the observation of actions made by conspecifics. The observation of speech reading activated the left pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, the observation of lip-smacking activated a small focus in the pars opercularis bilaterally, and the observation of barking did not produce any activation in the frontal lobe. Observation of all types of mouth actions induced activation of extrastriate occipital areas. These results suggest that actions made by other individuals may be recognized through different mechanisms. Actions belonging to the motor repertoire of the observer (e.g., biting and speech reading) are mapped on the observer's motor system. Actions that do not belong to this repertoire (e.g., barking) are essentially recognized based on their visual properties. We propose that when the motor representation of the observed action is activated, the observer gains knowledge of the observed action in a "personal" perspective, while this perspective is lacking when there is no motor activation.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

A comparison of behavioral techniques to teach functional independent-living skills to individuals with severe and profound mental retardation.

The efficacy of two treatment approaches was compared for functional skill acquisition in individuals with severe and profound mental retardation. Participants included 22 residents from a large developmental center (Pinecrest) in central Louisiana. Treatment including staff training, feedback, and edible reinforcement in addition to prompting, modeling, and physical guidance was more effective than prompting, modeling, and physical guidance alone. Additionally, daily documentation of teaching did not enhance treatment effectiveness. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1981

Elevation of voice volume in young developmentally delayed children via an operant shaping procedure.

Unusually low voice volume was identified by teachers as a significant impediment to the academic and social progress of two preschool students. A simple operant shaping procedure was conducted by teachers to increase voice volume using a voice-activated apparatus with attractive visual display. Setting generalization of volume increases to the classroom was achieved and maintained at one- and four-month follow-ups.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed1989

Generalized language learning by children with severe mental retardation: effects of peers' expressive modeling.

In this study, we investigated the conditions that contribute to observational learning of generalized language in children with severe mental retardation. Matrix-training strategies were used to teach 6 children with mental retardation to combine known words into two- or three-word utterances consistent with syntactic rules. Subsequently, the children learned two or more unknown words concurrently, inducing word-referent relations consistent with these word order rules. Generalized learning of responses not taught directly was shown to be under experimental control using a multiple baseline design across submatrices. Expressive modeling of only four or five responses was sufficient to promote recombinative generalization in the expressive and receptive modalities. Thus, 95% to 98% of subjects' learning was attributed to generalization processes. This study demonstrates how the efficiency of language training with children with mental retardation might be enhanced by coupling observational learning and matrix-training strategies.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed1984

Family structure, race, and adolescents' alcohol use: a research note.

Family structure is related to adolescents' drinking behavior differently for Blacks than Whites. Black adolescents were more likely to be heavy alcohol users when both natural parents were present, but the opposite was true for the whites. Only when non-White adolescents were in families with both parents, and the father had at least a high school education, did they drink near the rate of White adolescents. There was support of social learning theory.

Adolescent↗