IMPLICIT MEMORY IN CHILDREN WITH SPINA BIFIDA

这项拟议的研究的总体目标是检查患有脊柱裂的儿童的内隐记忆。脊柱裂对学习和记忆的影响还没有太详细的研究，之前的大多数研究都关注外显记忆，它涉及有意识的回忆，通常是通过回忆或识别来衡量的。相比之下，以前没有关于内隐记忆的研究，内隐记忆涉及有意识的回忆，通常是在没有有意识的回忆的情况下通过回忆或促进表现来衡量的。这项拟议的研究旨在研究脊髓脊膜膨出和分流性脑积水儿童的内隐记忆，并与严重创伤性脑损伤儿童和骨科损伤儿童的正常对照组进行比较。每组将有32名年龄在8岁至15岁之间的儿童。他们将被执行一项零散的图片识别任务，一项语义决策任务和一项语义决策任务。这两项任务将提供三种不同形式的内隐记忆的测量：知觉启动、概念启动和技能学习。这些孩子还将接受几项相关认知和学习技能的测试，这些技能是内隐记忆的潜在相关性。此外，两组患有脑部疾病的人将接受脑部核磁共振检查，以验证神经病理和内隐记忆缺陷之间的假设关系。根据成人神经学人群中建立的大脑-行为关系，患有脊柱裂和分流性脑积水的儿童，以及那些患有创伤性脑损伤的儿童，预计与兄弟姐妹对照组相比，在技能学习方面存在缺陷。与兄弟姐妹对照相比，患有脊柱裂和分流性脑积水的儿童预计也会在知觉启动方面表现出缺陷，但在概念启动方面并不存在缺陷。相比之下，患有创伤性脑损伤的儿童预计会表现出相反的模式，在概念启动方面存在缺陷，但在知觉启动方面没有缺陷。在所有三组中，知觉和概念启动分数预计与抽象推理的测量呈正相关，技能学习分数预计与数学技能呈正相关。此外，在两组患有大脑障碍的人中，MRI上的区域异常预计与特定的内隐记忆缺陷有关。这项拟议的研究将加强我们对脊柱裂儿童记忆功能的了解，从长远来看，也可能对康复和教育干预具有实际意义。

The overall goal of the proposed research is to examine implicit memory in children with spina bifida. The impact of spina bifida on learning and memory has not been studied in much detail, and most previous studies have been concerned with explicit memory, which involves conscious recollection and is typically measured through recall or recognition. In contrast, there are no previous studies of implicit memory, which involves conscious recollection and is typically measured through recall or facilitation of performance in the absence of conscious recollection. The proposed research is designed to study implicit memory in children with myelomeningocele and shunted hydrocephalus, as compared both to children with severe traumatic brain injuries and to a normative control group of children with orthopedic injuries. There will be 32 children between 8 and 15 years of age in each group. They will be administered a fragmented picture identification task and a semantic decision-making task and a semantic decision-making task. The two tasks will provide measures of three distinct forms of implicit memory: perceptual priming, conceptual priming, and skill learning. The children will also be administered several tests of related cognitive and academic skills, which are potential correlates of implicit memory. In addition, the two groups with brain disorder will undergo MRI of the brain, to validate the hypothesized relationships between neuropathology and implicit memory deficits. Based on brain-behavior relationships established in adult neurological populations, children with spina bifida and shunted hydrocephalus, as well as those with traumatic brain injuries, are expected to demonstrate deficits in skill learning when compared to sibling controls. Children with spina bifida and shunted hydrocephalus are also expected to show deficits in perceptual priming, but not conceptual priming, when compared to sibling controls. In contrast, children with traumatic brain injury are expected to show an opposite pattern, with deficits in conceptual priming but not perceptual priming. Across all three groups, perceptual and conceptual priming scores are expected to correlate positively with measures of abstract reasoning, and skill learning scores are expected to correlate positively with mathematical skills. In addition, in the two groups with brain disorder, regional abnormalities on MRI are expected to be associated with specific deficits in implicit memory. The proposed research will enhance our understanding of memory functioning in children with spina bifida, and in the long run also is likely to have practical implications for rehabilitative and educational intervention.