A comparison of formal and informal methods for assessing language and cognition in children with Rett syndrome

BACKGROUND: Opinions about the cognitive and receptive language skills of people with Rett syndrome (RTT) range from severe intellectual impairment to near-normal development. Assessment is challenging because most are non-verbal, with no purposeful hand use. Clarkson et al. (2017) adapted the Mullen Scales of Early Learning for use with eye gaze technology (MSEL-A/ET) for people with RTT. AIMS: To investigate and compare the performance of children with RTT on formal and newly-designed informal assessments of language and cognition using eye gaze/tracking technology. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Ten children with RTT aged 4:0-6:8 were assessed on the MSEL-A/ET for Visual Reception (VR) and Receptive Language (RL), and standard MSEL for Expressive Language (EL). Informal assessments of the same skills were embedded in activities such as reading and cake-decorating. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Standard scores on MSEL-A/ET VR and RL subtests ranged from 'very low' to 'above average'. All children scored 'very low' on standard EL assessment. Informal assessments added information about EL, with children producing 1-3 word utterances and a range of communicative functions through an eye gaze device. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Combining low-tech augmentative and alternative communication, eye gaze technology, informal activities and formal assessment, yields greater insight into children's abilities. This is important in informing suitable support and education for the individual

Internet Gaming Disorder treatment: a case study evaluation of four different types of adolescent problematic gamers

Research examining Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has grown markedly in recent years. However, research on its psychological treatment is still scarce, especially with respect to efficacy of specific programs. The PIPATIC (Programa Individualizado Psicoterapéutico para la Adicción a las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación) program is a 22-session specialized treatment for adolescents with IGD. The present paper briefly outlines the cases of four treatment-seeking male adolescents aged between 13 and 18 years with different clinical IGD profiles undergoing the treatment. A case study using an A-B-A’ withdrawal design was conducted. After completing the PIPATIC program, all participants showed clinical improvement in the amount of time spent using video games and in the symptoms of IGD. Results also demonstrated they received lower scores on clinical tests related to comorbid disorders. In an area with so few studies relating to IGD treatment, the present study is of existential value and contributes clinical information concerning the treatment of IGD in treatment-seeking adolescent patients

Enterprise development and informality : case studies from Mozambique

This thesis provides an empirical analysis of enterprise development and informality in Mozambique. It explores factors which hinder the development of the enterprise sector, focussing on the heterogeneity of firm responses to the institutional environment, with important consequences for economic growth, employment and poverty reduction. With the growing consensus on the centrality of institutions to economic growth, this thesis provides firm-level evidence to support the findings of aggregate, cross-country level analyses. Using enterprise survey evidence, it comprises four case studies from Mozambique, a country characterised in recent years by high economic growth rates but persistently high unemployment and poverty levels.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

An analysis of pre-crisis Madagascar firm performance: Firm growth and productivity

This paper uses firm-level data to examine the performance of developing country firms, focusing in particular on Madagascar during its pre-crisis period from 2004 to 2007. We use three different analyses: i) a cross-country comparison of firm performance across a selection of comparator countries; ii) a panel analysis of Malagasy firms using two years of survey data; and iii) an analysis of Malagasy micro and informal firms, using data from two additional surveys on micro-enterprises. These are intended to highlight structural factors thought relevant to understanding developing country firm performance, and particularly Malagasy firm performance. The three analyses lead to the following findings. Most firm employment growth is by medium and large firms and not micro and small firms as developed country studies would predict. Higher firm growth rates are positively associated with single proprietorships and firms that import inputs while, counter-intuitively, having a university-educated manager and a high share of skilled employees are associated with lower growth rates. In terms of labor productivity there is an apparent inverted-U relationship between firm performance and firm size: productivity increases up to a certain large size before stagnating or declining. As such, high productivity and firm growth relates to medium and large firms. Notable, productivity stagnates at a smaller firm size than growth rates, implying continuing growth without productivity growth. Our micro and informal sector firm analysis also suggests the presence of an inverted–U relation between size and productivity but at a vastly smaller scale. The evidence also suggests that informal firms have higher productivity than their formal counterparts. The results suggest two key policy messages. First, there is a need to tackle distortions and barriers to firm growth that hinder more productive firms from growing faster and unleashing their potential. Second, improvements in the business environment, in particular for micro and small firms will be fundamental to encouraging firms to operate in the formal sector and provide a basis for further firm expansion

Credit demand in Mozambican manufacturing

This paper uses two industrial firm surveys to identify the key determinants of credit demand in Mozambican manufacturing. We construct five different measures of being credit constrained and estimate desired debt demand. Besides firm size and ownership structure, we find evidence that general manager education and business association membership are associated with whether a firm is credit constrained or not. Using our preferred measure of credit constraint suggests that around 43 per cent of the firms surveyed are constrained, and these enterprises would almost triple their debt burden if borrowing constraints were relaxed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.