Neurocognitive Processes: Measurement, Connections to Academic Achievement and Clinical Applications

Dear Colleagues,

Undoubtedly, intelligence is a significant correlate of academic achievement. Despite its acknowledged importance, there are a few issues related to intelligence that remain unresolved. First, some researchers have argued that the relationship between intelligence and academic achievement may have been confounded by the fact that popular intelligence batteries include measures of vocabulary and mathematics in the estimation of an IQ score, which are too close to the outcome measures they aim to predict, thus creating a vicious circle. To bypass this problem, Das, Naglieri, and colleagues (e.g., Das et al., 1994; Naglieri & Otero, 2017) proposed measuring intelligence in terms of neurocognitive processes like planning, attention, and simultaneous and successive processing (see the PASS theory of intelligence). Unfortunately, not many studies have examined the link between PASS processes and academic achievement in unselected samples, particularly in upper elementary grades. In addition, we do not know if academic achievement and neurocognitive processes are reciprocally related. A second issue that remains unclear is the influence of culture and race on these cognitive processes. Naglieri et al. (2005) have argued that the Cognitive Assessment System (the battery of tasks used to operationalize PASS processes) is culturally fair and allows us to measure students’ cognitive processes that are not confounded by their language skills. However, again, little work has been conducted in this area. Finally, the clinical applications of using CAS (particularly in identifying interesting profiles of students) remain understudied. Thus, the overall goal of this Special Issue is to shed light on the PASS theory of intelligence and its clinical applications.

References

Das, J. P., Naglieri, J. A., & Kirby, J. R. (1994). Assessment of Cognitive Processes: The PASS Theory of Intelligence. Allyn & Bacon.

Naglieri, J. A., & Otero, T. M. (2017). Essentials of CAS2 Assessment. Wiley.

Naglieri, J. A., Rojahn, J. R., Matto, H. C., & Aquilino, S. A. (2005). Black–white differences in intelligence: A study of the PASS theory and Cognitive Assessment System. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 23, 146–160.

Prof. George K. Georgiou
Guest Editor

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• intelligence
• neurocognitive processes
• executive functions
• academic achievement
• brain-based intelligence testing
• discrepancy consistency model

Title: Neurocognitive functioning and persistent difficulties in verbal mathematical problem solving: exploring the predictive role of multidimensional models assessed in grade 2 on performance at the end of primary education

Abstract: Background: Most influential mathematical development models highlight the hierarchical development of domain-specific and domain-general skills. To provide longitudinal empirical support, this study has four objectives: First, to examine the relationships between PASS neurocognitive processes, mathematical and linguistic skills assessed in grade 2, and performance in solving verbal mathematical problems in grades 2 and 6. Second, to analyze how these processes interact to identify the optimal combination of predictors for solving problems. Third, to establish profiles of children with persistent difficulties in solving problems from 2nd to 6th grade. Finally, to assess the ability of 2nd-grade skills to predict persistent difficulties in solving problems by 6th grade. Methods: We assessed 117 students using tasks from a Cognitive Assessment System and the Revised Battery for the Assessment of Reading Processes. Additionally, domain-specific tasks from the Test for Diagnostic Assessment of Mathematical Disabilities were administered. Results and conclusions: Results indicated stable relationships among neurocognitive functioning, basic mathematical skills, and language skills from grades 2 to 6, with simultaneous processing and symbolic magnitude processing being crucial for problem-solving. Children with persistent difficulties exhibited initial global weaknesses across skills, emphasizing the importance of simultaneous processing and verbal magnitude processing for the early identification of at-risk students.

Title: Strategies used by Puerto Rican children in the Cognitive Assessment System and their relationship with planning performance

Abstract: Debates surrounding the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) Planning Scale focus on whether it assesses planning or processing speed. This study addressed this gap and examined the planning strategies used by children in the CAS2: Spanish version and their relationship with planning performance to understand the validity of the Planning Scale. We conducted an exploratory cross-sectional study with 26 Puerto Rican children aged 8 to 11. Results showed that no strategies were consistently used by participants according to examinees’ reports (f = 0% – 46%), but that examiners observed consistent use of some strategies such as (e.g., “Coded left to right, top to bottom”, f = 92%, “Scanned the page for the next number or letter”, f = 100%). Welsh t-tests did not show relationships between participants performance and the strategies observed by examiners, | mean differences | = 0.05 – 0.81, ps ≥ .05, nor with the strategies reported by participants, | mean differences | = 0.05 – 1.69, ps ≥ .05. These findings suggest that although the examiners may observe the use of strategies, the examinees are unaware of the strategies they use, and the strategies used are not associated with their performance. Future studies are needed to confirm these findings.