Papers by Maurits van der Molen
Journal of Psycholinguistic Research
Second language proficiency may be related to first language acquisition (Ganschow & Sparks, 1991... more Second language proficiency may be related to first language acquisition (Ganschow & Sparks, 1991), but relatively little is known about the relation between first and second language grammatical proficiency in primary school children who are in their first stages of foreign language learning. This study aims to determine whether differences in Dutch and English vocabulary and Dutch grammar skills predict differences in English grammatical proficiency in Dutch speaking children who are in grade 4 in primary school. The selected participants are monolingual Dutch pupils (N = 152), aged 9;0–10;0. To measure the children’s vocabulary the PPVT was used in Dutch (Schlichting, 2005) and in English (Dunn & Dunn, 2007). In addition, two grammar tasks in English and one in Dutch of the CELF (Semel et al., 2003) were used. The results show that English vocabulary is a strong predictor of English grammar skills, and that the Dutch vocabulary skills are weaker predictors of English grammar skil...
Finds and Results from the Swedish Cyprus Expedition: A Gender Perspective at the Medelhavsmuseet, 1970
Frontiers in Psychology, 2021
We performed an EEG graph analysis on data from 31 typical readers (22.27 ± 2.53 y/o) and 24 dysl... more We performed an EEG graph analysis on data from 31 typical readers (22.27 ± 2.53 y/o) and 24 dyslexics (22.99 ± 2.29 y/o), recorded while they were engaged in an audiovisual task and during resting-state. The task simulates reading acquisition as participants learned new letter-sound mappings via feedback. EEG data was filtered for the delta (0.5–4 Hz), theta (4–8 Hz), alpha (8–13 Hz), and beta (13–30 Hz) bands. We computed the Phase Lag Index (PLI) to provide an estimate of the functional connectivity between all pairs of electrodes per band. Then, networks were constructed using a Minimum Spanning Tree (MST), a unique sub-graph connecting all nodes (electrodes) without loops, aimed at minimizing bias in between groups and conditions comparisons. Both groups showed a comparable accuracy increase during task blocks, indicating that they correctly learned the new associations. The EEG results revealed lower task-specific theta connectivity, and lower theta degree correlation over bot...
System, 2021
Elongator protein 3 (ELP3) acetylates histones in the nucleus but also plays a role in the cytopl... more Elongator protein 3 (ELP3) acetylates histones in the nucleus but also plays a role in the cytoplasm. Here, we report that in Drosophila neurons, ELP3 is necessary and sufficient to acetylate the ELKS family member Bruchpilot, an integral component of the presynaptic density where neurotransmitters are released. We find that in elp3 mutants, presynaptic densities assemble normally, but they show morphological defects such that their cytoplasmic extensions cover a larger area, resulting in increased vesicle tethering as well as a more proficient neurotransmitter release. We propose a model where ELP3dependent acetylation of Bruchpilot at synapses regulates the structure of individual presynaptic densities and neurotransmitter release efficiency. Neuron ELP3 Acetylates BRP
Psychophysiology, 2019
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Intelligence, 2018
The current study examined the relation between mental rotation and fluid intelligence using perf... more The current study examined the relation between mental rotation and fluid intelligence using performance measures augmented with brain potential indices. Participants took a Raven's Progressive Matrices Test and performed on a mental rotation task presenting upright and rotated letter stimuli (60°, 120°or 180°) in normal and mirror image requiring a response execution or inhibition depending on instructions. The performance results showed that the linear slope relating performance accuracy, but not speed, to the angular rotation of the stimuli was related to individual differences in fluid intelligence. For upright stimuli, P3 amplitude recorded at frontal and central areas was positively associated with fluid intelligence scores. The mental rotation process was related to a negative shift of the brain potential recorded over the parietal cortex. The linear function relating the amplitude of the rotation-related negativity to rotation angle was associated with fluid intelligence. The slope was more pronounced for high-relative to low-ability participants suggesting that the former flexibly adjust their expenditure of mental effort to the mental rotation demands while the latter ones are less proficient in doing so.
Learning and Individual Differences, 2016
In the current study we examined the value of a dynamic test for predicting responsiveness to rea... more In the current study we examined the value of a dynamic test for predicting responsiveness to reading intervention for children diagnosed with dyslexia. The test consisted of a 20-minute training aimed at learning eight basic letter-speech sound correspondences within an artificial orthography, followed by a short assessment of both mastery of these correspondences and word reading ability in this unfamiliar script. Fifty-five (7-to 11-yearold) children diagnosed with dyslexia engaged in specialized intervention during approximately 10 months and their reading and spelling abilities were assessed before and after. Our results indicated that the dynamic test predicted variance in reading skills at posttest, over and above traditional static measures, such as phonological awareness and rapid naming. These findings indicate that responsiveness to learning new letter-speech sound correspondences has a prognostic value for the success of specialized reading intervention.
NeuroImage, Jan 23, 2016
Social connectedness theory posits that the brain processes social rejection as a threat to survi... more Social connectedness theory posits that the brain processes social rejection as a threat to survival. Recent electrophysiological evidence suggests that midfrontal theta (4-8Hz) oscillations in the EEG provide a window on the processing of social rejection. Here we examined midfrontal theta dynamics (power and inter-trial phase synchrony) during the processing of social evaluative feedback. We employed the Social Judgment paradigm in which 56 undergraduate women (mean age=19.67 years) were asked to communicate their expectancies about being liked vs. disliked by unknown peers. Expectancies were followed by feedback indicating social acceptance vs. rejection. Results revealed a significant increase in EEG theta power to unexpected social rejection feedback. This EEG theta response could be source-localized to brain regions typically reported during activation of the saliency network (i.e., dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, insula, inferior frontal gyrus, frontal pole, and the supplem...
Clinical Neurophysiology, 2016
h i g h l i g h t s Organization of brain networks in dyslexics and typically-reading controls. M... more h i g h l i g h t s Organization of brain networks in dyslexics and typically-reading controls. Minimum spanning tree (MST) graphs were derived from connectivity matrices. Graph metrics in the theta-band showed less integrated network configuration in dyslexics. a b s t r a c t Objective: Neuroimaging research suggested a mixed pattern of functional connectivity abnormalities in developmental dyslexia. We examined differences in the topological properties of functional networks between 29 dyslexics and 15 typically reading controls in 3rd grade using graph analysis. Graph metrics characterize brain networks in terms of integration and segregation. Method: We used EEG resting-state data and calculated weighted connectivity matrices for multiple frequency bands using the phase lag index (PLI). From the connectivity matrices we derived minimum spanning tree (MST) graphs representing the sub-networks with maximum connectivity. Statistical analyses were performed on graph-derived metrics as well as on the averaged PLI connectivity values. Results: We found group differences in the theta band for two graph metrics suggesting reduced network integration and communication between network nodes in dyslexics compared to controls. Conclusion: Collectively, our findings point to a less efficient network configuration in dyslexics relative to the more proficient configuration in the control group. Significance: Graph metrics relate to the intrinsic organization of functional brain networks. These metrics provide additional insights on the cognitive deficits underlying dyslexia and, thus, may advance our knowledge on reading development. Our findings add to the growing body literature suggesting compromised networks rather than specific dysfunctional brain regions in dyslexia.
Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 2016
The effects of neuroticism and depressive symptoms on psychophysiological responses in a social j... more The effects of neuroticism and depressive symptoms on psychophysiological responses in a social judgment task were examined in a sample of 101 healthy young adults. Participants performed a social judgment task in which they had to predict whether or not a virtual peer presented on a computer screen liked them. After the prediction, the actual judgment was shown, and behavioral, electrocortical, and cardiac responses to this judgment were measured. The feedbackrelated negativity (FRN) was largest after unexpected feedback. The largest P3 was found after the expected Blike^judgments, and cardiac deceleration was largest following unexpected Bdo not like^judgments. Both the P3 and cardiac deceleration were affected by gender-that is, only males showed differential P3 responses to social judgments, and males showed stronger cardiac decelerations. Time-frequency analyses were performed to explore theta and delta oscillations. Theta oscillations were largest following unexpected outcomes and correlated with FRN amplitudes. Delta oscillations were largest following expected Blike^judgments and correlated with P3 amplitudes. Self-reported trait neuroticism was significantly related to social evaluative predictions and cardiac reactivity to social feedback, but not to the electrocortical responses. That is, higher neuroticism scores were associated with a more negative prediction bias and with smaller cardiac responses to judgments for which a positive outcome was predicted. Depressive symptoms did not affect the behavioral and psychophysiological responses in this study. The results confirmed the differential sensitivities of various outcome measures to different psychological processes, but the found individual differences could only partly be ascribed to the collected subjective measures.
International Journal of Psychophysiology, 2014
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 2013
Research in Developmental Disabilities, 2009
Working memory (WM) deficits are known to exist in children and adults with moderate or severe in... more Working memory (WM) deficits are known to exist in children and adults with moderate or severe intellectual disability (IQ below 55; see for a recent review Gathercole & Alloway, 2006). The literature on WM functioning in children with mild intellectual disabilities (MID; IQ 55-85), however, is relatively scant. 1 The aim of the present study was to identify WM strengths and weaknesses in children with MID and to explore whether subgroups exist with unique WM profiles within this heterogeneous population.
Psychophysiology, 2009
Preparing for a cued, speeded response induces a set of physiological changes. A review of the ps... more Preparing for a cued, speeded response induces a set of physiological changes. A review of the psychophysiology of preparation suggested that inhibition of action was an important process among the constellation of changes constituting attentive preparation. The current experiment combined event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging and cardiac inter-beat interval measures in an experiment that compared preparing for a response, watching stimuli without responding, and responding in the absence of preparation. Ten college-aged participants were tested in an initial psychophysiological experiment followed by two scanning sessions during which reverse spiral imaging was performed concurrent with inter-beat interval measurement. Two analytic approaches were used to confirm blood oxygenation level dependent responses during preparation, and these converged to show inferior prefrontal and related subthalamic nuclei activity in the context of other known changes related to brain attentional networks. Subthalamic nuclei changes were related to the depth of preparatory cardiac deceleration. This pattern of findings suggests that preparation involves the activation of a complex inhibitory neural network implicating brain and autonomic nervous systems.
Psychophysiology, 1991
ABSTRACTThe present study used a computer model of the dynamic interaction between the vagus nerv... more ABSTRACTThe present study used a computer model of the dynamic interaction between the vagus nerve and the sinoatrial pacemaker membrane potential in the heart of the rabbit to reconstruct heart rate changes under vagal excitation conditions. We asked whether a hypothetical pattern of vagal acetylcholine (ACh) release, which was based on human heart rate results in a reaction time task, could be fit to this model. The reconstructed heart rate results showed changes that were highly consistent with experimental human heart rate changes. The model reliably reproduced effects of parameters such as intrinsic heart rate level, ACh stimulus intensity, and ACh stimulus duration. In addition, the effects of anticipatory vagal ACh release, stimulus‐induced ACh, and subsequent blocking of ACh, which usually interact in human cardiac cycle time functions, could be untangled in the reconstructed heart rate results. We concluded that the mathematical model may be useful for formulating hypothese...
Psychophysiology, 1994
This study examined age changes in three aspects of heart rate responsivity elicited in an audito... more This study examined age changes in three aspects of heart rate responsivity elicited in an auditory oddball task; anticipatory heart rate change, primary bradycardia, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia. Three age groups (5‐, 7‐, and 9‐year‐old boys) were presented with series of target (15%) and standard (85%) tones. The results were consistent with the findings reported previously in the adult literature. Heart rate decreased in anticipation of the target tone. The morphology of anticipatory deceleration was somewhat different for the 5‐year‐olds compared to the older children. Stimuli presented during the early part of the cardiac cycle induced added deceleration, but this primary bradycardia did not differ between age groups. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia did not discriminate between age groups but was suppressed during the performance of the oddball task relative to base level. It was concluded that these three aspects of heart rate responsivity show developmental constancy rather ...
Psychological Medicine, 2011
BackgroundDepressed patients are biased in their response to negative information. They have been... more BackgroundDepressed patients are biased in their response to negative information. They have been found to show a maladaptive behavioral and aberrant electrophysiological response to negative feedback. The aim of this study was to investigate the behavioral and electrophysiological response to feedback validity in drug-free depressed patients.MethodFifteen drug-free in-patients with unipolar major depression disorder (MDD) and 30 demographically matched controls performed a time-estimation task in which they received valid and invalid (i.e. related and unrelated to performance) positive and negative feedback. The number of behavioral adjustments to the feedback and the feedback-related negativity (FRN) were measured.ResultsPatients made fewer correct adjustments after valid negative feedback than controls, and their FRNs were larger. Neither patients nor controls adjusted their time estimates following invalid negative feedback.ConclusionsThe FRN results suggest that depressed drug-...
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Papers by Maurits van der Molen