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Developmental analysis of outerdirectedness in noninstitutionalized EMR children
American Journal of Mental Deficiency
|March 1, 1977
Summary
Outerdirectedness in children with mild intellectual disabilities decreases as cognitive ability (MA) increases. This study explored this relationship using two distinct measures, finding both decreased with higher MA.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Special Education
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Outerdirectedness, a tendency to rely on external cues, is linked to lower cognitive levels and past failures in children.
- Understanding the developmental trajectory of outerdirectedness is crucial for educational interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the developmental nature of outerdirectedness in noninstitutionalized children with educable intellectual disabilities (EMR).
- To examine the relationship between cognitive level (Mental Age) and two independent measures of outerdirectedness.
Main Methods:
- Forty noninstitutionalized EMR children, divided into two Mental Age (MA) groups, participated.
- Two independent measures of outerdirectedness were employed: glancing during a block-design task and imitation of experimenter behavior.
- The block-design task was designed to be equally challenging for both MA groups.
Main Results:
- Glancing away from the block-design task was inversely related to MA, indicating less reliance on external cues with higher cognitive ability.
- The amount of imitation of the experimenter's behavior was also inversely related to MA.
- Imitation and glancing behaviors were not significantly correlated, suggesting they represent distinct facets of outerdirectedness.
Conclusions:
- Outerdirectedness, as measured by both glancing and imitation, appears to decrease with increasing cognitive ability (MA) in EMR children.
- The lack of correlation between the two measures suggests that different aspects of outerdirectedness may be influenced by cognitive development independently.