Minimalist perspectives for psycholinguistic research

A particular approach to the study of psycholinguistic processes is presented, which is based on a minimalist conception of language. A procedural model of language acquisition is sketched, which reconciles infants speech processing and the idea of innately guided learning with a minimalist view of the initial state of language acquisition in an account of the bootstrapping problem. Language acquisition is viewed as proceeding with the progressive specification of formal features of the functional categories of the lexicon. The possibility of a minimalist derivation to be incorporated in a sentence production and/or comprehension model is discussed. Possible sources of language impairment, as manifested in SLI (Specific Language Impairment) syndrome, are considered in the light of this integrative approach. Reference is made to experimental work carried out in Brazilian Portuguese, with some extension to European Portuguese and River-Plate Spanish.

Type 2 diabetes; elderly; cognitive deficit; cognitive flexibility; executive functions Resumen

Through meditation, people become aware of what happens in the body and mind, accepting the present experiences as they are and getting a better understanding of the true nature of things. Meditation practices and its inclusion as an intervention technique, have generated great interest in identifying the brain mechanisms through which these practices operate. Different studies suggest that the practice of meditation is associated with the use of different neural networks as well as changes in brain structure and function, represented in higher concentration of gray matter structures at the hippocampus, the right anterior insula, orbital frontal cortex (OFC) and greater involvement of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). These and other unrelated studies, shows the multiple implications of the regular practice of mindfulness in the structures and functions of the brain and its relation to certain observable and subjective states in people who practice it. Such evidence enabling the inclusion of mindfulness in psychological therapy where multiple applications have been developed to prove its effectiveness in treating affective and emotional problems, crisis management, social skills, verbal creativity, addiction and craving management, family and caregivers stress of dementia patients and others. However, neuropsychological rehabilitation has no formal proposals for intervention from these findings. The aim of this paper is to propose use of Mindfulness in neuropsychological rehabilitation process, taking the positions and theory of A.R. Luria.

Efecto de la frecuencia léxica y silábica en afasia anómica

Objetivo: este estudio compara el desempeño de dos grupos de participantes con y sin afasia anómica en tareas de decisión léxica (TDL) y de deletreo en relación con el efecto de las variables de frecuencia léxica y silábica. Materiales y métodos: se realizó un estudio prospectivo con un diseño 2x2x2, donde se administraron la TDL, en la cual cada participante debía decidir si el estímulo presentado correspondía a palabra o pseudopalabra y la tarea de deletreo, donde los participantesdebían deletrear de forma oral cada una de las palabras presentadas auditivamente. Resultados: para la TDL, el grupo experimental presentó mayor porcentaje de error en los estímulos de alta frecuencia silábica, mientras que el control tuvo más errores en aquellos de baja frecuencia silábica. En cuanto a los tiempos de reacción, el grupo experimental tardó más que los controles en resolver la tarea. La tarea de deletreo no mostró diferencia de ejecución por grupos ni condiciones(frecuencia léxica y silábica). Conclusiones: los resultados del presente estudio demuestran el efecto de facilitación de la frecuencia léxica y la inhibición que genera la frecuencia silábica alta, ampliamente soportada por la investigación en población normatizada mediante diferentes lenguajes.