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- ItemRelationships between executive funtions and linguistic skills in Spanish-speaking children with and without developmental language disorder(2024) Torres Morales, Felipe Hernán; Rosas Díaz, Ricardo; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de PsicologíaDevelopmental language disorder (DLD) is a condition that impacts the development of different language skills, mainly vocabulary and morphosyntax. In addition, DLD has often been associated with difficulties in executive functions (EFs). It has also been suggested that difficulties in EF could be linked to language deficits in these children. Based on this, a broader perspective suggests that the development of language and EFs may be interconnected in children with and without DLD. However, the specific patterns in which each EF is associated with language skills remain unclear. For this reason, three studies were proposed. The first study aims to describe the performance of several EFs in children with DLD compared to an age-matched typical development (TD) group. Then, two central studies explore the EFs-language relationship in children with and without DLD. Study 2 investigates the relationship between several EF measures and vocabulary knowledge (size and depth). Study 3 evaluates the relationship between several EFs and morphosyntactic skills (comprehension and production). For the three studies, 204 children aged 6 to 8 years were examined: 105 with DLD and 99 with typical development (TD). In Study 1, multiple regression models were performed with group (DLD and TD) as the independent variable and each EF, one at a time, as the dependent variable. For studies 2 and 3, multiple regression models were performed including the EFs as predictors and language skills (vocabulary in study 2, and morphosyntax in study 3) as outcome variables. All models were adjusted to the participant's age and nonverbal intelligence. Complementarily, in studies 2 and 3, after identifying the EFs associated with each language skill (vocabulary and morphosyntax), path analyses were conducted to explore models of relationships between variables. The results of Study 1 indicate that DLD children have significantly lower performance in interference control, response inhibition, and verbal working memory compared to TD children. There was no difference in nonverbal working memory and cognitive flexibility. Results from studies 2 and 3 indicate that verbal working memory and cognitive flexibility are significantly associated with vocabulary knowledge and morphosyntactic skills in children with DLD. In children with TD, there is less reliance on EFs for language processing. These studies suggest that EFs play a crucial role in language development in children with DLD, highlighting the importance of including EF activities in intervention programs for this population.
- ItemApropiación de alfabetizaciones múltiples a través de prácticas de indagación dialógica(2024) Barrera Olmedo, María José; Grau Cárdenas, Valeska Valentina; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de PsicologíaEl objetivo de este proyecto es estudiar los procesos de apropiación de habilidades de alfabetización múltiple en niños de primaria a partir de su participación en un programa de innovación educativa basado en indagación dialógica. Se trabajó en el diseño e implementación de un programa llamado INDAGA, el cual se fundamenta en una perspectiva sociocultural y se enmarca en un eje de enseñanza de las ciencias y Desarrollo Sostenible. La investigación sigue un diseño mixto con el que se espera tener una mejor comprensión de la apropiación y los procesos de aprendizaje que tuvieron lugar durante la implementación del programa. Se condujo un estudio cuasiexperimental con grupo control para analizar la apropiación de alfabetización científica, multimodal y conocimientos sobre desarrollo sostenible a partir de la participación en el programa. Adicionalmente, se llevó a cabo un análisis en profundidad del diálogo y la escritura de participantes focales de la condición experimental a través de herramientas cualitativas de grano fino.Los resultados sugieren que el diseño del programa tuvo un impacto positivo en el aprendizaje de los estudiantes, en particular en la comprensión de fenómenos socioecológicos, alfabetización científica y alfabetización multimodal.
- ItemThe therapeutic alliance negotiation in the “Here and Now”: therapists’ mindfulness and its influence in the psychotherapeutic process(2025) Reinel Pineda, Mahaira Catalina; Krause Jacob, Mariane; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de PsicologíaTherapeutic alliance ruptures have been understood as a lack of cooperation in the tasks or objectives, or tension in the affective bond, including drastic breakdowns in collaboration, understanding, or communication, and lesser tensions of which one or both participants may remain not fully aware (Muran & Eubanks, 2020; Salgado, 2016). They are presented through behaviors in which the patient or the therapist directly expresses rage, resentment, or dissatisfaction with some aspects of the therapy or with the other, and/or the patient and/or therapist disconnects or distances from the other, from their own emotions, or certain aspects of the psychotherapeutic process. A large body of research has highlighted the importance of the recognition, agreement, and resolution of ruptures for therapeutic change and positive therapy outcomes, as well as the influence of some therapists’ factors that contribute to this process. Even though mindfulness has been proposed extensively as a facilitative factor when therapists need to deal with difficult moments in the psychotherapeutic process, there are some gaps in how mindfulness is displayed during the psychotherapeutic process, particularly at times when therapists require full attention to what is going on with their patients, while regulating their reactions and how it could be associated with the therapeutic alliance negotiation and the patient’s experience. This work aims to evaluate the association between the therapist’s mindfulness, the process of the therapeutic alliance negotiation between patient and therapist, and the session’s impact on the patient through a therapeutic naturalistic micro process study in a sample of 6 therapeutic dyads. For this purpose, mindfulness state and in action, therapeutic alliance negotiation, and patient experience measures were taken. Mindfulness state showed to have a relationship with the emotional state at the end of the sessions for patients, but not with the assessment of them. Also, the mindfulness state did not show a significant influence on the process of therapeutic alliance ruptures and resolution, and only a few mindfulness-in-action indicators showed a higher probability of predicting different types of ruptures. Less evidence was found about the potential of the prediction of mindfulness in action on resolution strategies. However, these results provide preliminary evidence about how therapists use different characteristics of mindfulness during critical moments in therapy and about the importance of moving from intrapersonal mindfulness to interpersonal or relational mindfulness in the training of therapists.The results should be taken with caution given the small sample size and the lack of control of other variables that may influence this study.
- ItemTRAYECTORIAS DE CAMBIO: Desde las características del paciente y del terapeuta(2018) Fuentes Cerda, Valeria; Errázuriz Arellano, Paula; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de PsicologíaEste estudio describe las trayectorias de cambio psíquico observadas desde la perspectiva del paciente en sus primeras seis sesiones de psicoterapia y la relación de esas trayectorias con la duración y resultados de la psicoterapia, y diferentes características del paciente y de su terapeuta que predicen cada trayectoria. Para esto se utilizaron el modelo mixto de crecimiento con clases latentes (Growth Mixture Modeling- GMM, Muthén, 2004; Muthén & Muthén, 2000) y el análisis de regresión multinominal en una muestra de 400 pacientes, quienes describieron su funcionamiento psicológico con el Cuestionario de Resultados 30.2, (Outcome Questionnaire, OQ-30.2, Errázuriz, Opazo, Behn, Silva & Glogger, 2017). Coincidente con estudios previos se logran describir tres trayectorias de cambio psíquico: a) Disfunción inicial moderada con leve cambio desfavorable, b) Disfunción inicial leve con cambio favorable, y c) Disfunción inicial elevada con rápido cambio favorable. La relación de estas tres trayectorias de cambio y las variables predictivas muestra una relación significativa respecto de la edad del paciente, donde a mayor edad aumenta la probabilidad de pertenecer al primer grupo (disfunción inicial moderada con leve cambio desfavorable). Se concluye que existe elevada heterogeneidad en el cambio que despliegan los pacientes en psicoterapia con tres grupos característicos. Un amplio grupo que mejora en forma lenta y progresiva, y dos grupos que muestran formas contrapuestas de cambio, siendo uno de mejoría rápida y temprana, mientras el otro aumenta su disfunción lenta y progresivamente. Futuras investigaciones debiesen incorporar otras medidas de cambio, como alianza terapéutica y cambio del paciente visto desde otros informantes, así como información acerca de las razones del egreso y medidas de seguimiento que ayuden a desentrañar lo que incide en estas diferentes trayectorias de cambio en psicoterapia.
- ItemThe effects of reading motivation on reading comprehension difficulties in primary education students(2024) Jéldrez San Martin, Elvira; Strasser Salinas, Katherine; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Escuela de PsicologíaReading comprehension is vital for academic success and active engagement in society. However, persistent challenges in reading comprehension have been observed across educational levels, underscoring the need for deeper research. While linguistic and cognitive components have been traditionally studied, the impact of motivational aspects on comprehension difficulties remains underexplored. This dissertation aimed to address this gap by investigating the effects of various dimensions of reading motivation on specific types of reading comprehension difficulties among Chilean Primary Education students. Adopting a mixed-methods approach, the research comprised three studies. Study 1 developed and tested a comprehensive reading motivation scale. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses validated the scale's structure and assessed its reliability. Study 2 explored the relationship between reading motivation dimensions and reading profiles (mixed deficit, poor decoders, poor comprehenders, and good readers). Cluster analysis identified distinct reading profiles, and multivariate analyses examined differences in motivation dimensions among these profiles. Study 3 employed qualitative methods to delve into students' perceptions of reading value and self-concept, particularly among those with reading difficulties. Students' reasons for engagement or disengagement with reading activities were explored through interviews. The participants were 172 students from 2nd to 6th grade from three public schools in Santiago. Quantitative assessments included reading comprehension, word reading, language comprehension, and a reading motivation questionnaire. Qualitative data was collected through interviews with a subsample of 75 students. Findings from this dissertation include differences in motivation between groups of readers, especially for undermining reading motivations and the distinction of readers’ self-concept and value. The studies offer insights into the nuanced relationship between reading motivation and comprehension difficulties and the need for further research on this population.