Elsevier

Research in Developmental Disabilities

Volume 19, Issue 5, September–October 1998, Pages 409-421
Research in Developmental Disabilities

Original Articles
Simultaneous and delayed matching to sample in gesture users and speakers with mental retardation

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0891-4222(98)00014-6Get rights and content

Abstract

Sixty-eight participants with severe mental retardation participated in a study of representational matching to sample. Participants were asked to match objects to identical objects, line drawings, miniature objects (icons), pantomimes, and spoken names. Participants who were successful in these matching tasks also experienced delayed matching tasks. Participants differed in their expressive communication and comparisons were made between symbolic (speaking) individuals, distal gesture users, and contact gesture users. Contact gesture users were significantly worse on identical matching to sample tasks than other participants. Mean scores on matching objects to line drawings were significantly better than mean scores on other matching tasks. In delayed matching, however, scores for matching objects to spoken names were significantly better than other tasks. The implications of these results for learning to use an augmentative communication device are discussed.

Section snippets

Participants

Sixty-eight individuals participated. Participants were referred to us by cooperating agencies throughout Kansas. The average age of the participants was 22 years, 7 months, with a range in age of 7 to 35 years. Each participant had a diagnosis or classification of severe mental retardation based on the American Association for Mental Retardation’s classification system (Grossman, 1983). Diagnoses were made by psychologists or psychiatrists associated with the school or agency responsible for

Results

Table 2 presents the number of participants who passed each matching task. Ten correct responses out of 12 trials were considered a passing score.

The following results are presented in terms of three different levels of the study because of the criteria guiding when to discontinue testing. The first level of results is for all 68 individuals who participated in the identity match to sample task with real objects. The second level is for 39 participants who passed identity matching and completed

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Cited by (10)

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This research was supported by Grant 5 PO1 HD 18955 from the National Instutute of Child Health and Human Development.

1

Nancy C. Brady now at the Department of Communication Disorders, University of Minnesota.

2

Lee K. McLean now at the A. J. Pappanikou Center, University of Connecticut.

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