Mnemonic Strategy Instruction in Coding, Processing, and Recall of Movement-Related Cues by Mentally Retarded Children

Abstract

The purpose of study was to examine the differential coding and processing characteristics of two movement cue types in the investigation of the short-term memory of mentally retarded and nonretarded children. The central focus of the study was to determine the effects of formal instruction in the use of a mnemonic versus no instruction with both types of cues in a memory for movement paradigm. The investigation was conducted across two experiments. The main conclusion drawn from Exp. 1 was that movement 'location' cues were coded, processed, and retained by both the mentally retarded and the nonretarded children, but only the former required instruction in the use of a mnemonic to achieve accurate recall. Exp. 2 was fundamentally a replication of Exp. 1 with the exception that movement 'extent' cues were maintained reliable. The results were similar but not exactly the same as those of Exp. 1. Only the mentally retarded children given mnemonic instruction appeared to code, process, and retain movement 'extent' cues over time. The net result of the two experiments was that formal instruction in the use of a mnemonic was of benefit to the mentally retarded subjects and was not necessary for nonretarded subjects to achieve the same level of movement accuracy.

A note on motor skill acquisition in mild and moderate Down syndrome individuals

“…The mild group did not show this speed-accuracy trade-off. Down syndrome individuals have problems to structure spatially motor sequences also due to limitations associated with memory problems and selective attention (Reid 1980;Horgan 1983;Inui et al 1995;Lanfranchi et al 2015). These difficulties would be associated not only with information storage but also with an inability to recognize stimuli and determine strategies for information storage.…”

Step regulation in Paralympic long jumpers with intellectual impairment

“…It is suggested that, if individuals with II are properly instructed, they can perform qualitatively like their chronological-age counterparts (Eichstaedt & Lavay 1992). With some extra time and proper training (appropriate feedback, adequate trials, and sufficient practice time), individuals with II may store information in the long-term memory, improve their movement accuracy equally to counterparts without II (Horgan, 1983), and eventually reach and maintain mastery. Van Biesen et al (2010) suggested that, through repetitions, II athletes are becoming aware of information processing.…”