Kate Cockcroft
Datos Biográficos
| ID | 355042 |
|---|---|
| NOMBRE | Kate Cockcroft |
| NOMBRES | Kate |
| APELLIDO | Cockcroft |
| FIRMA | COCKCROFT K |
| AFILIACIONES | University of the Witwatersrand |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-6166-8050 |
| VERIFICADO | Sí |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 24 |
| TOTAL DE CITAS | 21 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 24 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMER AÑO DE PUBLICACIÓN | 2000 |
| AÑO MÁS RECIENTE DE PUBLICACIÓN | 2025 |
| ÍNDICE H | 3 |
Why South Africa needs cognitive neuroscientists
Despite a long-standing and growing popularity in the minority world (wealthier regions that represent a small percentage of the world population), cognitive neuroscience has been slow to attract South African researchers and practitioners. This brief commentary reflects on why South Africa needs its own cognitive neuroscientists. Prevailing theories and constructs in the field are developed from minority world populations and are taken unquestio…
The Covid-19 resilience journey of vulnerable young South Africans
Resilience, the ability to adapt well to adversity, is a critical factor in the well-being and success of young individuals. This study explored the multifaceted nature of resilience among South African youth challenged by COVID-related stressors and structural disadvantage. Specifically, this paper reports a follow-up qualitative leg of a sequential mixed-method design. Thirty-eight young adults (average age 24), all of whom reported high risk e…
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder
Children with disruptive mood dysregulation disorder have difficulties with emotion regulation and recognition which impacts their social functioning. Due to its recent definition, there is limited information on the neural mechanisms of this disorder. This exploratory study examined the role of autonomic heart regulation in children with disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, motivated by suggestions of reduced autonomic regulation (measured by…
South African emerging adults' capacity for resilience in the face of Covid-19 stressors
Little is known about resilience responses to COVID-19 stressors from emerging adults in minority world contexts. In this cross-sectional study, we explored the association between self-reported COVID-19 stressors and capacity for resilience in 351 emerging adults (Meanage = 24.45, SD = 2.57; 68% female) who self-identified as Black African. We were interested in whether age, gender and neighbourhood quality influenced this association. The main …
Creativity in Older Adults
Creativity involves generating novel and valuable ideas. While the importance of creative thinking is widely acknowledged, its cognitive basis is poorly understood, particularly in older adults. This study aimed to develop and test an explanatory model of creative thinking to elucidate its underlying cognitive functions in an elderly sample. The role of demographic variables, including age, multilingualism, socioeconomic status (SES), level of ed…
Emerging Adult Resilience to the Early Stages of the Covid-Pandemic
Human resilience to COVID-19 related stressors remains a pressing concern following the aftereffects of the pandemic and in the face of probable future pandemics. In response, we systematically scoped the available literature (n = 2030 records) to determine the nature and extent of research on emerging adults' adaptive responses to COVID-19 stressors in the early stages of the pandemic. Using a multisystem resilience framework, our narrative revi…
Controlling for inequality in neuropsychological assessment
The practice of neuropsychological assessment in South Africa is complicated by the lack of norms that are representative of clients’ educational and linguistic experiences. In an attempt to address this challenge, we argue that Crawford and Howell’s Single-Case Methodology in Neuropsychology is a good option for the neuropsychological investigation of cases that are not well represented by the available norms. This research design and inferentia…
Multisystemic Resources Matter for Resilience to Depression
This article interrogates the continuing emphasis on personal sources of resilience; it also amends the inattention to the protective factors and processes (PFPs) that support the mental health resilience of African emerging adults. To that end, we report a study that explored which PFPs distinguished risk-exposed South African 18- to 29-year-olds with negligible depression symptoms from those who reported moderate to severe symptoms. Using an ar…
National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic
Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and stricter hygiene) and endorsed public policy interventions (e.g., closing bars and restaurants) during …
Working memory and multilingualism
This study investigated the relationship between balanced multilingualism and working memory. Specifically, it reports on the relationship between balanced proficiency in speaking, reading and comprehension (across three languages), and verbal and visuospatial working memory in young South African adults. Information about participants’ language experience and proficiency in up to three languages was used to create variables capturing the extent …
Predicting attitudinal and behavioral responses to Covid-19 pandemic using machine learning
At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions. In this study, we applied machine learning on the multi-national data collected by the International Collaboration on the Social…
Working memory in multilinguals
Investigations of working memory advantages in bilinguals yield inconsistent findings. Even less is known about how the addition of languages beyond two (multilingualism) may affect working memory. Due to their experience with managing multiple languages, it is possible that multilinguals may be more practised in the use of their working memories. This exploratory study investigated whether multilingualism in three or more languages contributes t…
Working memory and psychological resilience in South African emerging adults
The role of cognitive factors, such as working memory, in psychological resilience has not been widely investigated, although a few studies tentatively suggest a positive association. Given the contextually embedded nature of resilience, sociocultural factors may also influence any relationship between working memory and resilience, and so a concurrent triangulation, mixed method design, located in a socioecological model, was employed to explore…
A comparison between verbal working memory and vocabulary in bilingual and monolingual South African school beginners
This study compared bilingual and monolingual school beginners on measures of simple and complex verbal working memory and receptive and expressive vocabulary. The aim was to determine whether the tests of working memory are fairer measures of language ability than the vocabulary tests for bilingual children when tested in their second language. Participants were 120 school beginners, comprising English first- (monolingual) and second-language (b…
The Impact of Gender, Socioeconomic Status and Home Language on Primary School Children’s Reading Comprehension in KwaZulu-Natal
The current study constituted part of a larger, longitudinal, South African-based study, namely, The Road and Aircraft Noise Exposure on Children's Cognition and Health (RANCH-South Africa). In the context of a multicultural South Africa and varying demographic variables thereof, this study sought to investigate and describe the effects of gender, socioeconomic status and home language on primary school children's reading comprehension in KwaZulu…
Psychological assessment in post-apartheid South Africa
In 2014, South Africa is into its 20th year since the 1994 elections which ushered in a democratic government and marked the official end of apartheid. The discipline of Psychology has in this time attained many milestones, several of which relate to the sub-discipline of psychological assessment. Prior to, during, and post-apartheid, psychological assessment featured as one of the most contentious areas in the history of the country, as well as …
Deaf children and children with ADHD in the inclusive classroom
This study compared the working memory functioning of deaf children, children with ADHD and typically developing children. Working memory is involved in the storage and mental manipulation of information during classroom learning activities that are crucial for the acquisition of complex skills and knowledge. Thus, it is important to determine how these groups compare in this regard as this has implications for teaching them together in an inclus…
The Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices
This study examined relationships between the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices, the Similarities subtest of the South African Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales and an adaptation of the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test Reading Comprehension subtest. Comparisons between these relationships were drawn on the basis of home language and gender in a sample of 100 university students. Results indicated significant relationships between the Advance…
Does Aircraft Noise Impair Learners' Reading Comprehension, Attention and Working Memory? A Pilot Study
The study sought to determine whether the cognitive performance of learners is affected by exposure to aircraft noise. The cognitive performance (reading comprehension, attention and memory) of 174 learners aged 9–13 years (males = 69, females = 68; Unidentified = 37), attending a public school in a high aircraft noise areas was compared with that of learners attending a matched public school with typical noise for a school setting. Cognitive per…
Effects of Mediated Learning Experience, Tutor Support and Peer Collaborative Learning on Academic Achievement and Intellectual Functioning among College Students
The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of mediated learning experience, tutor support and peer collaborative learning on academic achievement and intellectual functioning. The sample comprised 111 first year engineering students (males=38, females=73, age range =16–23), who were randomly assigned to three learning conditions (Mediation: n=45, Tutor: n=36 and Peer: n=30). Data on academic achievement were based on mid-year…
The Relationship between Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) Subtests and Reading Ability
In this paper we discuss the results of a study that identified the relationships between different cognitive functions, as measured by selected subtests of the Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) and the Neale Analysis of Reading Ability — Revised (Neale). The SSAIS-R subtests included Vocabulary, Similarities, Story Memory, and Coding. The Neale assesses three different components of reading, namely, rate, accuracy, and co…
The Fallible Phallus
This article presents a discourse analysis of the constructions of male sexuality in the South African publication Men's Health. The focus of the analysis was a series of monthly featured articles on best sexual practices and behaviour. Since the magazine's content appears to confront men with, on the one hand, the construction of the ideal, potent phallus, and, on the other hand, the fallibility inherent in attempting to live up to this ideal, t…
The Relationship between Lecture Attendance and Academic Performance in an Undergraduate Psychology Class
This article reports on a preliminary investigation into the impact of non-attendance at lectures on the performance of students in a second-year psychology class. Results suggest that the frequency of lecture attendance is significantly, but moderately, related to better academic performance and that ‘always’ attending lectures is the best indicator of academic performance. These results are discussed in relation to understanding lecture non-att…
Codeswitching Among Multilingual Learners in Primary Schools in South Africa
Codeswitching is an important interactional resource in South Africa's multilingual and multicultural society. This article discusses the incidence of codeswitching in primary schools and examines the speakers' motivations for employing codeswitching. The data is drawn from conversations in both formal (classroom) and informal (playground) situations and the discussion is informed by current theoretical frameworks in codeswitching research. The i…
The Fallible Phallus
This article presents a discourse analysis of the constructions of male sexuality in the South African publication Men's Health. The focus of the analysis was a series of monthly featured articles on best sexual practices and behaviour. Since the magazine's content appears to confront men with, on the one hand, the construction of the ideal, potent phallus, and, on the other hand, the fallibility inherent in attempting to live up to this ideal, t…
Psychological assessment in post-apartheid South Africa
In 2014, South Africa is into its 20th year since the 1994 elections which ushered in a democratic government and marked the official end of apartheid. The discipline of Psychology has in this time attained many milestones, several of which relate to the sub-discipline of psychological assessment. Prior to, during, and post-apartheid, psychological assessment featured as one of the most contentious areas in the history of the country, as well as …
Working memory in multilinguals
Investigations of working memory advantages in bilinguals yield inconsistent findings. Even less is known about how the addition of languages beyond two (multilingualism) may affect working memory. Due to their experience with managing multiple languages, it is possible that multilinguals may be more practised in the use of their working memories. This exploratory study investigated whether multilingualism in three or more languages contributes t…
The Relationship between Lecture Attendance and Academic Performance in an Undergraduate Psychology Class
This article reports on a preliminary investigation into the impact of non-attendance at lectures on the performance of students in a second-year psychology class. Results suggest that the frequency of lecture attendance is significantly, but moderately, related to better academic performance and that ‘always’ attending lectures is the best indicator of academic performance. These results are discussed in relation to understanding lecture non-att…
Controlling for inequality in neuropsychological assessment
The practice of neuropsychological assessment in South Africa is complicated by the lack of norms that are representative of clients’ educational and linguistic experiences. In an attempt to address this challenge, we argue that Crawford and Howell’s Single-Case Methodology in Neuropsychology is a good option for the neuropsychological investigation of cases that are not well represented by the available norms. This research design and inferentia…
Multisystemic Resources Matter for Resilience to Depression
This article interrogates the continuing emphasis on personal sources of resilience; it also amends the inattention to the protective factors and processes (PFPs) that support the mental health resilience of African emerging adults. To that end, we report a study that explored which PFPs distinguished risk-exposed South African 18- to 29-year-olds with negligible depression symptoms from those who reported moderate to severe symptoms. Using an ar…
Working memory and psychological resilience in South African emerging adults
The role of cognitive factors, such as working memory, in psychological resilience has not been widely investigated, although a few studies tentatively suggest a positive association. Given the contextually embedded nature of resilience, sociocultural factors may also influence any relationship between working memory and resilience, and so a concurrent triangulation, mixed method design, located in a socioecological model, was employed to explore…
The Relationship between Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) Subtests and Reading Ability
In this paper we discuss the results of a study that identified the relationships between different cognitive functions, as measured by selected subtests of the Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) and the Neale Analysis of Reading Ability — Revised (Neale). The SSAIS-R subtests included Vocabulary, Similarities, Story Memory, and Coding. The Neale assesses three different components of reading, namely, rate, accuracy, and co…
Codeswitching Among Multilingual Learners in Primary Schools in South Africa
Codeswitching is an important interactional resource in South Africa's multilingual and multicultural society. This article discusses the incidence of codeswitching in primary schools and examines the speakers' motivations for employing codeswitching. The data is drawn from conversations in both formal (classroom) and informal (playground) situations and the discussion is informed by current theoretical frameworks in codeswitching research. The i…
The Relationship between Lecture Attendance and Academic Performance in an Undergraduate Psychology Class
This article reports on a preliminary investigation into the impact of non-attendance at lectures on the performance of students in a second-year psychology class. Results suggest that the frequency of lecture attendance is significantly, but moderately, related to better academic performance and that ‘always’ attending lectures is the best indicator of academic performance. These results are discussed in relation to understanding lecture non-att…
The Relationship between Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) Subtests and Reading Ability
In this paper we discuss the results of a study that identified the relationships between different cognitive functions, as measured by selected subtests of the Senior South African Individual Scale — Revised (SSAIS-R) and the Neale Analysis of Reading Ability — Revised (Neale). The SSAIS-R subtests included Vocabulary, Similarities, Story Memory, and Coding. The Neale assesses three different components of reading, namely, rate, accuracy, and co…
The Fallible Phallus
This article presents a discourse analysis of the constructions of male sexuality in the South African publication Men's Health. The focus of the analysis was a series of monthly featured articles on best sexual practices and behaviour. Since the magazine's content appears to confront men with, on the one hand, the construction of the ideal, potent phallus, and, on the other hand, the fallibility inherent in attempting to live up to this ideal, t…
Effects of Mediated Learning Experience, Tutor Support and Peer Collaborative Learning on Academic Achievement and Intellectual Functioning among College Students
The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of mediated learning experience, tutor support and peer collaborative learning on academic achievement and intellectual functioning. The sample comprised 111 first year engineering students (males=38, females=73, age range =16–23), who were randomly assigned to three learning conditions (Mediation: n=45, Tutor: n=36 and Peer: n=30). Data on academic achievement were based on mid-year…
Does Aircraft Noise Impair Learners' Reading Comprehension, Attention and Working Memory? A Pilot Study
The study sought to determine whether the cognitive performance of learners is affected by exposure to aircraft noise. The cognitive performance (reading comprehension, attention and memory) of 174 learners aged 9–13 years (males = 69, females = 68; Unidentified = 37), attending a public school in a high aircraft noise areas was compared with that of learners attending a matched public school with typical noise for a school setting. Cognitive per…
The Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices
This study examined relationships between the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices, the Similarities subtest of the South African Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales and an adaptation of the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test Reading Comprehension subtest. Comparisons between these relationships were drawn on the basis of home language and gender in a sample of 100 university students. Results indicated significant relationships between the Advance…
Deaf children and children with ADHD in the inclusive classroom
This study compared the working memory functioning of deaf children, children with ADHD and typically developing children. Working memory is involved in the storage and mental manipulation of information during classroom learning activities that are crucial for the acquisition of complex skills and knowledge. Thus, it is important to determine how these groups compare in this regard as this has implications for teaching them together in an inclus…
Psychological assessment in post-apartheid South Africa
In 2014, South Africa is into its 20th year since the 1994 elections which ushered in a democratic government and marked the official end of apartheid. The discipline of Psychology has in this time attained many milestones, several of which relate to the sub-discipline of psychological assessment. Prior to, during, and post-apartheid, psychological assessment featured as one of the most contentious areas in the history of the country, as well as …
A comparison between verbal working memory and vocabulary in bilingual and monolingual South African school beginners
This study compared bilingual and monolingual school beginners on measures of simple and complex verbal working memory and receptive and expressive vocabulary. The aim was to determine whether the tests of working memory are fairer measures of language ability than the vocabulary tests for bilingual children when tested in their second language. Participants were 120 school beginners, comprising English first- (monolingual) and second-language (b…
The Impact of Gender, Socioeconomic Status and Home Language on Primary School Children’s Reading Comprehension in KwaZulu-Natal
The current study constituted part of a larger, longitudinal, South African-based study, namely, The Road and Aircraft Noise Exposure on Children's Cognition and Health (RANCH-South Africa). In the context of a multicultural South Africa and varying demographic variables thereof, this study sought to investigate and describe the effects of gender, socioeconomic status and home language on primary school children's reading comprehension in KwaZulu…
Working memory and psychological resilience in South African emerging adults
The role of cognitive factors, such as working memory, in psychological resilience has not been widely investigated, although a few studies tentatively suggest a positive association. Given the contextually embedded nature of resilience, sociocultural factors may also influence any relationship between working memory and resilience, and so a concurrent triangulation, mixed method design, located in a socioecological model, was employed to explore…
National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic
Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and stricter hygiene) and endorsed public policy interventions (e.g., closing bars and restaurants) during …
Working memory and multilingualism
This study investigated the relationship between balanced multilingualism and working memory. Specifically, it reports on the relationship between balanced proficiency in speaking, reading and comprehension (across three languages), and verbal and visuospatial working memory in young South African adults. Information about participants’ language experience and proficiency in up to three languages was used to create variables capturing the extent …
Predicting attitudinal and behavioral responses to Covid-19 pandemic using machine learning
At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions. In this study, we applied machine learning on the multi-national data collected by the International Collaboration on the Social…
Working memory in multilinguals
Investigations of working memory advantages in bilinguals yield inconsistent findings. Even less is known about how the addition of languages beyond two (multilingualism) may affect working memory. Due to their experience with managing multiple languages, it is possible that multilinguals may be more practised in the use of their working memories. This exploratory study investigated whether multilingualism in three or more languages contributes t…
Creativity in Older Adults
Creativity involves generating novel and valuable ideas. While the importance of creative thinking is widely acknowledged, its cognitive basis is poorly understood, particularly in older adults. This study aimed to develop and test an explanatory model of creative thinking to elucidate its underlying cognitive functions in an elderly sample. The role of demographic variables, including age, multilingualism, socioeconomic status (SES), level of ed…
Emerging Adult Resilience to the Early Stages of the Covid-Pandemic
Human resilience to COVID-19 related stressors remains a pressing concern following the aftereffects of the pandemic and in the face of probable future pandemics. In response, we systematically scoped the available literature (n = 2030 records) to determine the nature and extent of research on emerging adults' adaptive responses to COVID-19 stressors in the early stages of the pandemic. Using a multisystem resilience framework, our narrative revi…
Controlling for inequality in neuropsychological assessment
The practice of neuropsychological assessment in South Africa is complicated by the lack of norms that are representative of clients’ educational and linguistic experiences. In an attempt to address this challenge, we argue that Crawford and Howell’s Single-Case Methodology in Neuropsychology is a good option for the neuropsychological investigation of cases that are not well represented by the available norms. This research design and inferentia…
Multisystemic Resources Matter for Resilience to Depression
This article interrogates the continuing emphasis on personal sources of resilience; it also amends the inattention to the protective factors and processes (PFPs) that support the mental health resilience of African emerging adults. To that end, we report a study that explored which PFPs distinguished risk-exposed South African 18- to 29-year-olds with negligible depression symptoms from those who reported moderate to severe symptoms. Using an ar…
The Covid-19 resilience journey of vulnerable young South Africans
Resilience, the ability to adapt well to adversity, is a critical factor in the well-being and success of young individuals. This study explored the multifaceted nature of resilience among South African youth challenged by COVID-related stressors and structural disadvantage. Specifically, this paper reports a follow-up qualitative leg of a sequential mixed-method design. Thirty-eight young adults (average age 24), all of whom reported high risk e…
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder
Children with disruptive mood dysregulation disorder have difficulties with emotion regulation and recognition which impacts their social functioning. Due to its recent definition, there is limited information on the neural mechanisms of this disorder. This exploratory study examined the role of autonomic heart regulation in children with disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, motivated by suggestions of reduced autonomic regulation (measured by…
South African emerging adults' capacity for resilience in the face of Covid-19 stressors
Little is known about resilience responses to COVID-19 stressors from emerging adults in minority world contexts. In this cross-sectional study, we explored the association between self-reported COVID-19 stressors and capacity for resilience in 351 emerging adults (Meanage = 24.45, SD = 2.57; 68% female) who self-identified as Black African. We were interested in whether age, gender and neighbourhood quality influenced this association. The main …
Why South Africa needs cognitive neuroscientists
Despite a long-standing and growing popularity in the minority world (wealthier regions that represent a small percentage of the world population), cognitive neuroscience has been slow to attract South African researchers and practitioners. This brief commentary reflects on why South Africa needs its own cognitive neuroscientists. Prevailing theories and constructs in the field are developed from minority world populations and are taken unquestio…
Psychology (23 obras) · Developmental psychology (15 obras) · Cognition (11 obras) · Cognitive psychology (10 obras) · Sociology (9 obras) · Medicine (8 obras) · Linguistics (7 obras) · Social Psychology (7 obras) · Computer Science (6 obras) · Working memory (6 obras)