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Haptition: intra-modal and cross-modal comparisons between normal and brain-injured children

University of British Columbia

The purpose of this study was to explore the possibility of discriminating between three groups of children ("normal," "mildly braindamaged," and "severely brain-damaged") by evaluating their respective abilities to compare the size, shape, and texture of certain objects by means of tactile perception. To this end seven subtasks were devised to measure the haptic perception of these qualities separately and in combination. Two of the subtasks included visual perception as well in a cross modal situation. Twenty-one subjects were used in a pilot study which resulted in minor changes being made to the subtasks. In the experimental study twelve subjects of both sexes between the ages of seven and ten years formed each of the three groups. Analysis of the results of the study showed significant differences (at the .05 level) between normal and severely brain-damaged subjects for two subtasks. No differences between minimally brain-damaged and severely brain-damaged subjects were shown for any of the subtasks at the .05 level of significance, and no difference was shown between normal and minimally brain-damaged subjects at this level of significance.

Text

2010-02-10

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/20029

Special Education

University of British Columbia

Graduate