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Language difficulties exert profound negative effects on the cognitive and social development of autistic children. Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) is a promising intervention for improving social communication in autistic children, but there is a lack of a comprehensive examination of language functions. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of PRT in promoting the primary language functions (requesting, labeling, repeating, responding) defined by (Skinner, B. F. (1957). Verbal behavior. Martino Publishing.) theory of verbal behavior in autistic children. Thirty autistic children were randomly divided into the PRT group (M age  = 6.20, SD age  = 1.21) and control group (M age  = 6.07, SD age  = 1.49). The PRT group were provided with an 8-week training of the PRT motivation component in addition to treatment as usual (TAU) in their schools, whereas the control group only received TAU. Parents of the PRT group were also trained to practice the PRT motivation procedures at home. The PRT group demonstrated greater improvements in all four measured language functions compared to the control group. The improvement in language functions in the PRT group was generalized and maintained at the follow-up assessment. In addition, the PRT intervention enhanced untargeted social and communicative functioning, cognition, motor skills, imitation, and adaptive behaviors in the autistic children. In conclusion, language intervention using the motivation component of PRT is effective in promoting language functions as well as widespread untargeted cognitive and social functions in autistic children., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Research on the discursive features of graffiti in institutional settings is in its infancy and few studies have investigated the phenomenon and its implications in educational contexts. In this paper, we report on a study in which we employed systemic functional linguistics (Halliday in Learning how to mean, Edward Arnold, 1975). to probe communicative functions and gender differences in Iranian university student graffiti that appeared in all-male and all-female locations. The data comprised authentic instances of graffiti generated by students, analysis of which suggests that male and female university students each have their own distinctive motives for using graffiti, as realised in significant differences observed in the context-specific functions they perform. Graffiti pieces represented a distinctive and meaningful way of communicating, and its most salient features were creativity, simplicity and variation. Indications are that university students' graffiti reflects psychological and social challenges, and the thoughts, attitudes and feelings expressed through it serve students' personal and interactional purposes., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Researchers have taken an interest to study the language of English materials that learners use in different contexts. One line of inquiry is to examine the pragmatic competence potential of such materials. This study aimed at examining the use of speech acts and language functions in the 21st Century English for Libya Secondary 1, 2, and 3 course books and workbooks. To achieve this aim, a frequency-based analysis of language functions and speech acts in the conversation sections in the five course books and five workbooks was followed. A data analysis revealed that the distribution of speech acts and language functions is highly skewed; in each analysis domain, a given category accounted for almost half of the data while other categories accounted for little or even none. Findings are used to argue that Libyan students need a more balanced and language-in-use informed distribution of English functions and speech acts to learn the pragmatic features of English; otherwise, they are less likely to become communicatively competent in speech acts and functions that have been not been treated adequately. The findings also highlight that the unequal frequency and distribution of these pragmatic variables are in line with previous studies and provide implications for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum, material designers, and language practitioners., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Alhadi Ali Ahmed, Mohammadzadeh and Mazlum.)

Antipsychotic treatment resistance affects up to a third of individuals with schizophrenia. Of those affected, 70-84% are reported to be treatment resistant from the outset. This raises the possibility that the neurobiological mechanisms of treatment resistance emerge before the onset of psychosis and have a neurodevelopmental origin. Neuropsychological investigations can offer important insights into the nature, origin and pathophysiology of treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS), but methodological limitations in a still emergent field of research have obscured the neuropsychological discriminability of TRS. We report on the first systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate neuropsychological differences between TRS patients and treatment-responsive controls across 17 published studies (1864 participants). Five meta-analyses were performed in relation to (1) executive function, (2) general cognitive function, (3) attention, working memory and processing speed, (4) verbal memory and learning, and (5) visual-spatial memory and learning. Small-to-moderate effect sizes emerged for all domains. Similarly to previous comparisons between unselected, drug-naïve and first-episode schizophrenia samples v. healthy controls in the literature, the largest effect size was observed in verbal memory and learning [ dl = -0.53; 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.29 to -0.76; z = 4.42; p < 0.001]. A sub-analysis of language-related functions, extracted from across the primary domains, yielded a comparable effect size ( dl = -0.53, 95% CI -0.82 to -0.23; z = 3.45; p < 0.001). Manipulating our sampling strategy to include or exclude samples selected for clozapine response did not affect the pattern of findings. Our findings are discussed in relation to possible aetiological contributions to TRS.

Purpose: Language dysfunction is a crucial deficit in terms of cognitive functioning, quality of life and activities of daily living. Several studies have identified cognitive impairment in patients with cancer across several cognitive domains, including language., Methods: We investigated language functions among 182 patients with different types of cancer (not brain cancer) and compared them with the performance of Greek healthy adults with the same age and educational levels as the patients. The assessment included verbal fluency test, both semantic (animals) and phonological (X), and Boston Naming Test (BNT-60) among other neuropsychological measures., Results: Breast cancer patients performed worse compared to patients with prostate, colorectal and thyroid cancer in language tasks. In addition, breast cancer patients had a decreased performance compared with healthy adults, while patients with other types performed to the mean in two out of three language tasks., Conclusions: Semantic and phonological fluency requirements of cognitive processes in the brain are discussed., Implications for Cancer Survivors: Language dysfunction is a crucial deficit in terms of cognitive functioning, quality of life and activities of daily living, especially in brain cancer patients, but it can be crucial for patients with other types of cancer as stated in the present study.

The frontal aslant tract (FAT) is a recently documented white matter tract that connects the inferior and superior frontal gyri with a tendency to be more pronounced in the left hemisphere. This tract has been found to play a role in language functions, particularly verbal fluency. However, it is not entirely clear to what extent FAT asymmetry is related to performance benefits in language-related tasks. In the present study, we aimed to fill this gap by examining the correlations between asymmetric micro- and macro-structural properties of the FAT and performance on verbal fluency and lexical decision tasks. The results showed no correlation between the FAT and verbal fluency; however, lexical decision was correlated with FAT laterality. Specifically, greater left lateralization in both micro- and macro-structural properties was related to faster lexical decision response times. The results were not due merely to motor or decision-making processes, as responses in a simple discrimination control task showed no correlation with laterality. These data are the first to suggest a role for the FAT in mediating processes underlying lexical decision.

The effects of epilepsy and its treatments have contributed significantly to language models. The setting of epilepsy surgery, which allows for careful pre- and postsurgical evaluation of patients with cognitive testing and neuroimaging, has produced a wealth of language findings. Moreover, a new wave of surgical interventions, including stereotactic laser ablation and radio frequency ablation, have contributed new insights and corrections to language models as they can make extremely precise, focal lesions. This review covers the common language deficits observed in focal dyscognitive seizure syndromes. It also addresses the effects of surgical interventions on language, and highlights insights gained from unique epilepsy assessment methods (e.g., cortical stimulation mapping, Wada evaluation). Emergent findings are covered including a lack of involvement of the hippocampus in confrontation word retrieval, possible roles for key white matter tracts in language, and the often-overlooked basal temporal language area. The relationship between language and semantic memory networks is also explored, with brief consideration given to the prevailing models of semantic processing, including the amodal Hub and distributed, multi-modal processing models., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Healthy aging is accompanied by a continuous decline in cognitive functions. For example, the ability to learn languages decreases with age, while the neurobiological underpinnings for the decline in learning abilities are not known exactly. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), in combination with appropriate experimental paradigms, is a well-established technique to investigate the mechanisms of learning. Based on previous results in young adults, we tested the suitability of an associative learning paradigm for the acquisition of action- and object-related words in a cohort of older participants. We applied tDCS to the motor cortex (MC) and hypothesized an involvement of the MC in learning action-related words. To test this, a cohort of 18 healthy, older participants (mean age 71) engaged in a computer-assisted associative word-learning paradigm, while tDCS stimulation (anodal, cathodal, sham) was applied to the left MC. Participants' task performance was quantified in a randomized, cross-over experimental design. Participants successfully learned novel words, correctly translating 39.22% of the words after 1 h of training under sham stimulation. Task performance correlated with scores for declarative verbal learning and logical reasoning. Overall, tDCS did not influence associative word learning, but a specific influence was observed of cathodal tDCS on learning of action-related words during the NMDA-dependent stimulation period. Successful learning of a novel lexicon with associative learning in older participants can only be achieved when the learning procedure is changed in several aspects, relative to young subjects. Learning success showed large inter-individual variance which was dependent on non-linguistic as well as linguistic cognitive functions. Intriguingly, cathodal tDCS influenced the acquisition of action-related words in the NMDA-dependent stimulation period. However, the effect was not specific for the associative learning principle, suggesting more neurobiological fragility of learning in healthy aging compared with young persons.

Although different MRI-based techniques have been proposed to assess the hemispheric lateralization for language (HLL), the agreement across methods, and its relationship with language abilities, are still a matter of debate. In the present study we obtained measures of HLL using both task-evoked activity during the execution of three different protocols and task-free methods of functional [resting state functional connectivity (rs-FC)] and anatomical [diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography] connectivity. Regional analyses focusing on the perisylvian language network were conducted to assess the consistency of HLL across techniques. In addition, following a multimodal approach, we identified macro-factors of lateralization and examined their relationship with language performance. Our findings indicate the existence of a negative relationship between the structural asymmetry of the direct segment of the arcuate fasciculus (AF) and the inter-hemispheric rs-FC of key nodes of the perisylvian network. Instead, despite all the language tasks exhibited a leftward pattern of asymmetry, measures of HLL derived from task-evoked activity did not show a direct relationship with those obtained with the two task-free methods. Furthermore, a robust brain-behavioral relationship was observed only with a specific macro-factor that combined HLL measures derived from all MRI techniques. In particular, general language performance was positively related to more symmetrical structural organization, stronger inter-hemispheric communication at rest but more lateralized activation of Wernicke's territory during production tasks. Our findings, while not supporting the existence of a direct relationship between indices of hemispheric lateralization for language derived from different MRI techniques, indicate that general language performance can be indexed using combined MRI measures. The same approach might prove successful for likewise complex human behaviours., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this study was to compare the verbal functions and language skills of male psychopathic individuals (in prison and outside) with non-psychopaths. The purpose was therefore to analyze phonological processing, reading and writing skills, the meaning of words and images, and the understanding of sentences. Ninety individuals with an average age of 38.19 (SD = 7.67) voluntarily participated in this study. The data were collected in different settings: prisons, a private charitable organization, and private clinics and health centers. All participants completed the Psychopathy Checklist Revised and the Psycholinguistic Assessment of Language Processing in Aphasia, to assess psychopathy traits and language skills, respectively. Participants were allocated into four different groups: incarcerated psychopathic offenders (n = 13), non-incarcerated psychopathic non-offenders living in the community (n = 13), incarcerated non-psychopathic offenders (n = 25), and non-psychopathic non-offenders living in the community (n = 39). The results showed that the verbal functions and language skills between psychopaths and non-psychopaths are very similar, showing a common profile. The data presented indicate the need for more specific work opportunities for both groups within the correctional setting, with the use of appropriate language and individualized programs as necessary., (© The Author(s) 2014.)

Objective: Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia, typically shows a slow clinical progression over time. 'Rapidly progressive' AD, a variant of the disease characterized by an aggressive course, exhibits distinct clinical, biological, and neuropathological features. Here, we investigate neuropsychological predictors of rapid decline in a group of mild patients with AD., Methods: One hundred fifty-three mild patients with AD admitted to a memory disorder clinic and followed for up to 3 years were included in this study. A comprehensive neuropsychological (NP) battery was performed at the time of enrollment. Patients were defined as 'rapidly progressive' if they exhibited a drop of 6 or more points on the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) between two consecutive annual visits. This event defined the main outcome in multiple analyses of variance and Cox proportional hazards models that investigated the impact of NP predictors. Categorical principal component analysis (CATPCA) was also employed in order to delineate clusters of NP tests and to test their effect on the outcome., Results: Of 153 subjects, thirty-seven (24%) were classified as 'rapidly progressive'; those subjects showed younger age of symptoms onset compared to slow decliners (68 vs 71.5 years old). Baseline lower performance on a neuropsychological test of naming predicted a rapid decline over the follow-up (P = 0.001). Three clusters of NP were defined by CATPCA: (i) executive/language, (ii) visuospatial memory, and (iii) verbal memory. The executive/language component predicted a rapid decline over the follow-up (P = 0.016)., Conclusion: Early executive/language impairment is highly predictive of a rapid progression of AD., (© 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

A theoretical framework which considers the verbal functions of the brain under a multivariate and comprehensive cognitive model was statistically analyzed. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to verify whether some recognized aphasia constructs can be hierarchically integrated as latent factors from a homogenously verbal test. The Brief Aphasia Evaluation was used. A sample of 65 patients with left cerebral lesions, and two supplementary samples comprising 35 patients with right cerebral lesions and 30 healthy participants were studied. A model encompassing an all inclusive verbal organizer and two successive organizers was validated. The two last organizers were: three factors of comprehension, expression and a "complementary" verbal factor which included praxia, attention, and memory; followed by the individual (and correlated) factors of auditory comprehension, repetition, naming, speech, reading, writing, and the "complementary" factor. By following this approach all the patients fall inside the classification system; consequently, theoretical improvement is guaranteed.

Objective: The arcuate fasciculus has been recognized as an important pathway for language processing. Brain tumors located in proximity to the fasciculus frequently cause preoperative language impairment, and in some cases, no language recovery occurs after tumor resection. No predictive value has been presented for possible postoperative language recovery after tumor resection. The aim of this study is to analyze the preoperative state of the arcuate fasciculus in the patients with brain tumor from the perspective of its usefulness as a predictive factor for postoperative recovery of language functions., Methods: For 12 right-handed patients with brain tumors in the left hemisphere, preoperative arcuate fasciculi were analyzed with fractional anisotropy (FA) of the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography. Language functions were evaluated pre- and postoperatively by using the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB). The preoperative value of the FA of the arcuate fasciculus on the lesion side was examined in relation with the language recovery., Results: There was a positive relationship between preoperative increasing values of the FA of the left arcuate fasciculus and improvement of the postoperative total WAB score (p=0.0056), and the scores of the naming (p=0.018), reading (p=0.029), and writing subcategories (p=0.012) CONCLUSION: The preoperative increasing value of the FA of the arcuate fasciculus in the dominant hemisphere could be a predictor for postoperative language recovery following tumor resection. Meticulous procedure should be performed especially in the cases with higher FA of the arcuate fasciculus harboring high possibility of language recovery., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Recently, growing interest emerged in the enhancement of human potential by means of non-invasive brain stimulation. In particular, anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (atDCS) has been shown to exert beneficial effects on motor and higher cognitive functions. However, the majority of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) studies have assessed effects of single stimulation sessions that are mediated by transient neural modulation. Studies assessing the impact of multiple stimulation sessions on learning that may induce long-lasting behavioural and neural changes are scarce and have not yet been accomplished in the language domain in healthy individuals., Method: The present study probed the potential of atDCS to enhance language learning over multiple days by employing an explicit word learning paradigm. Forty healthy young participants were randomized to learning with either simultaneous atDCS or sham stimulation (N = 20/group; comparable regarding demographic variables and neurocognitive status). All participants acquired a novel vocabulary (familiar and novel object picture - non-word pairs) over five consecutive days. Two memory tasks (free recall; forced choice recognition tasks) were administered immediately after each training session. A one week follow-up tested the maintenance of learning success., Results: Linear mixed effects model analysis revealed superior learning during atDCS compared to sham stimulation for both familiar and novel objects. atDCS yielded a steeper learning curve and significantly more pronounced learning at the end of the training during the recall task. During the recognition task, the atDCS group reached ceiling levels earlier and overall learning success was greater. For both tasks, beneficial atDCS effects were maintained during the follow-up assessment., Conclusions: The present study provides direct evidence that atDCS administered during multiple learning sessions facilitates language learning and that effects are maintained over time. This study contributes important novel information about the extent of stimulation effects in the healthy brain, thereby highlighting the potential of atDCS to enhance language recovery after stroke., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)