This study explored the relationships among children's performance on a simplified version of Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures (MFF) Test of conceptual tempo, their IQ, their performance on several measures of self-regulatory behavior, and their general activity level. Subjects were 55 preschool boys and girls. (Author/JMB)

To continue exploration of the educational problems of deprived children, 32 disadvantaged and 32 advantaged children ranging in age from 4 years, 8 months to 5 years, 8 months, were selected to take a battery of tests designed to measure some of the skills and characteristics thought to be related to academic success. The factors measured and the…

Referred children were rated as significantly less self-controlled on the self control rating scale (SCRS) than were matched nonreferred children. Significant differences were found on the SCRS, Matching Familiar Figures test latencies and behavioral observations. The SCRS appeared to be a reliable and valid index of self-control. (Author)

Compared the performance of learning disabled and normal-achieving third- and fourth-grade children on Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test to determine group differences along the impulsivity-reflection dimension. Overall results suggest that learning disabled children are not more impulsive but rather use poor strategic behavior in processing…

To ascertain whether impulsive responding in behavior disordered adolescents is amenable to change, 15-year-old normal and "acting-out" behavior disordered adolescents participated in an experiment designed to alter Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFF) scores through a modeling psychoeducational procedure. No significant…

The relationship between self-control and role-taking deficits as exhibited by 37 female institutionalized juvenile delinquents was assessed by Chandler's measure of social egocentrism. Subjects, matched on the basis of their scores on the Matching Familiar Figures (MFF) Test, were randomly assigned to treatment or control groups. The treatment…

Cognitive self-instructional (CSI) programs have been successful in improving problem-solving skills in many, but not all, children. The importance of understanding the influence of subject characteristics in self-control studies, while often ignored in actual research, has been repeatedly advocated verbally. This paper presents a study designed…

The study compared the performance of severe and mild learning disabled children to normal children on a problem-solving task. The three types of children were assessed on the Matching Familiar Figures task. Results indicated that on the MFF, LD children, as a group, were more impulsive than normal children. (Author)

Investigated time conceptualizations and delay of gratification capacities of 64 6- to 10-year-olds identified as impulsive or reflective according to performance on Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test. They were administered a maintenance of delay of gratification task, a time concept questionnaire, and several measures of temporal perspective…

Two dimensions of cognitive impulsivity, accuracy and latency, were assessed in fourth graders by the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFF) and were related to teachers' ratings of adjustment and peers' sociometric preferences. MFF accuracy entered into a greater number of significant relationships than did MFF latency. (Author)

Four studies were conducted to examine the manner in which cognitively impulsive and reflective children use private speech to control their behaviors. The first study was a naturalistic observation of a group of impulsive (N=8) and reflective (N=8) nursery school children, identified by the Matching Familiar Figures Test. The Impulsive and…

From a co-operative education class in an urban high school, 16 adolescent males were identified as impulsive and as high-risk based on their performance on the Matching Familiar Figures test and the advice of teachers and counselors. Students participated in 12 to 15 videotaped group problem-solving sessions (20-25 minutes in length) over a…

This study investigated whether the stimulant methylphenidate (Ritalin) would differentially affect performance on a test of cognitive style by hyperactive children. Subjects were 55 children, (ages 7 to 15) referred to the Learning Clinic at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada for hyperactivity and/or learning problems. A paired…