COGNITIVE ABILITIES FOLLOWING CLOSED-HEAD BRAIN INJURY

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The proposed project will bridge two areas of research, one concerning the recovery from and long-term effects of closed-head brain injury, and the other concerning the role of visual imagery in memory and cognition by normal and brain-injured patients. Research by the PI over the past few years has lead to a revised understanding of the role of visual imagery in learning, memory, and other cognitive processes in normal individuals (see Marschark & Hunt, in press; Marschark, Richman, Yuille, & Hunt, 1987; Marschark & Surian, in press). This theoretical framework has lead to specific predictions about the functional locus of the frequently observed deficits in nonverbal memory and spatial processing by individuals with close-head brain injuries (Marschark, 1988). In an attempt to tie together research on imagery and the long-term implications of closed-head brain injuries, a pilot study was conducted to determine the extent of residual impairments in the imaginal and verbal functioning of university freshman who had suffered close-head brain injuries at some point previous to college entry. Results indicated clear differences between those students and a control group, matched for SAT scores and sex, on imagery tests but not on verbal tests. The proposed research will extend this research over a broader range of diagnostic tests and over a much larger, well- controlled sampled (from a pool of approximately 6400 college freshman over a 4-year period). An extensive test battery will tap verbal and nonverbal abilities "on-line" as well as memory for verbal and nonverbal information. Results will be analyzed in conjunction with information concerning the head injuries and academic performance. Three related studies will examine specific aspects of cognitive functioning in traditional experimental paradigms. Findings will clarify and extend our knowledge concerning the long-term effects of closed-head brain injuries; alternative strategies for the rehabilitation of individuals with such injuries; the relationship between observed deficits in memory, visuo- spatial functioning and imagery ability in individuals with closed-head brain injuries; and the functional role of visual imagery in human memory and cognition.