The Role and Sources of Individual Differences in Critical-Analytic Thinking: a Capsule Overview

Intellectual Performance and Educational Attainment of Mexican Adolescents in Poverty

The objective of this study was to determine factors that can predict the intellectual performance and educational attainment of adolescents living in poverty. Data of Mexican adolescents from rural and urban areas (N = 1,093, 55.8% male, 61% urban) and their mothers were analyzed. The data came from a probabilistic sample with national representativeness of beneficiary households of the governmental program to fight poverty Oportunidades. Mothers and children were surveyed separately at home using questionnaires. Results from structural equations modeling revealed that higher intellectual performance was determined by older age, higher maternal intellectual performance and education, more adequate parenting practices, fewer siblings, and less insecure neighborhoods. Higher educational attainment was predicted by older age, higher intellectual performance, and more psychological resources. Data explained 25% of the variance of intellectual performance, and 39% of the variance of educational attainment. Results are discussed regarding the possibility of enhancing intellectual performance and education.

Enhancing Critical Thinking in Graduate Nursing Online Asynchronous Discussions

BACKGROUND

Graduate nursing students in online courses often have limited success in developing the critical thinking (CT) skills essential for advanced roles. This study describes the use of complementary strategies in a graduate-level nursing course to enhance CT in online discussions.

METHOD

Using Paul and Elder's framework for understanding the components of CT, the authors designed an asynchronous online course using multiple strategies to promote CT. We used mixed methods to collect descriptive and numerical data and content and repeated measures analyses to identify changes in CT skills and student perceptions across the semester.

RESULTS

CT scores increased significantly and aligned with students' perceived improvements in CT.

CONCLUSION

Evidence of CT in online discussions increased significantly across the semester with the use of multiple instructional strategies and substantial student and faculty efforts. The findings are a useful benchmark for future studies comparing combinations of strategies to identify those most effective and least arduous. [J Nurs Educ. 2016;55(9):514-521.].

Beyond the bilingual advantage: The potential role of genes and environment on the development of cognitive control

In recent years there has been considerable debate about the presence or absence of a bilingual advantage in tasks that involve cognitive control. Our previous work has established evidence of differences in brain activity between monolinguals and bilinguals in both word learning and in the avoidance of interference during a picture selection task. Recent models of cognitive control have highlighted the importance of a set of neural structures that may show differential tuning due to exposure to two languages. There is also evidence that genetic factors play a role in the availability of dopamine in neural structures involved in cognitive control. Thus, it is important to investigate whether there are interactions effects generating variability in language acquisition when attributed to genetic (e.g., characteristics of dopamine turnover) and environmental (e.g., exposure to two languages) factors. Here preliminary results from genotyping of a sample of bilingual and monolingual individuals are reported. They reveal different distributions in allele frequencies of the DRD2/ANKK1 taq1A polymorphism. These results bring up the possibility that bilinguals may exhibit additional flexibility due to differences in genetic characteristics relative to monolinguals. Future studies should consider genotype as a possible contributing factor to the development of cognitive control across individuals with different language learning histories.