Biomedical subjects

Sylvain Sirois

Publications and source records attributed to Sylvain Sirois.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2007

Neuroconstructivism.

Neuroconstructivism is a theoretical framework focusing on the construction of representations in the developing brain. Cognitive development is explained as emerging from the experience-dependent development of neural structures supporting mental representations. Neural development occurs in the context of multiple interacting constraints acting on different levels, from the individual cell to the external environment of the developing child. Cognitive development can thus be understood as a trajectory originating from the constraints on the underlying neural structures. This perspective offers an integrated view of normal and abnormal development as well as of development and adult processing, and it stands apart from traditional cognitive approaches in taking seriously the constraints on cognition inherent to the substrate that delivers it.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Modeling developmental cognitive neuroscience.

In the past few years connectionist models have greatly contributed to formulating theories of cognitive development. Some of these models follow the approach of developmental cognitive neuroscience in exploring interactions between brain development and cognitive development by integrating structural change into learning. We describe two classes of these models. The first focuses on experience-dependent structural elaboration within a brain region by adding or deleting units and connections during learning. The second models the gradual integration of different brain areas based on combinations of experience-dependent and maturational factors. These models provide new theories of the mechanisms of cognitive change in various domains and they offer an integrated framework to study normal and abnormal development, and normal and impaired adult processing.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2006

Preschoolers out of adults: discriminative learning with a cognitive load.

This paper explores novel predictions from the spontaneous overtraining interpretation of human discrimination shift learning (Sirois & Shultz, 1998a). Results from six experiments where adults perform a discrimination shift task with or without a cognitive distractor are reported. In three experiments with a concurrent distractor task (Experiments 1A, 2A, and 3A), performance of adults is comparable to what would be expected from preschoolers performing only the learning task. These adults show no dimensional transfer from initial learning, unless new attributes are introduced in shift learning. On the same tasks without a cognitive load (Experiments 1B, 2B, and 3B), performance is typical of normal adults. The discussion focuses on the relative ability of competing theoretical models (i.e., levels of processing, attentional mediation, and perceptual differentiation) to account for these data.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Autoassociator networks: insights into infant cognition.

This paper presents autoassociator neural networks. A first section reviews the architecture of these models, common learning rules, and presents sample simulations to illustrate their abilities. In a second section, the ability of these models to account for learning phenomena such as habituation is reviewed. The contribution of these networks to discussions about infant cognition is highlighted. A new, modular approach is presented in a third section. In the discussion, a role for these learning models in a broader developmental framework is proposed.

Artificial Intelligence↗

PubMed2004

An interacting systems model of infant habituation.

Habituation and related procedures are the primary behavioral tools used to assess perceptual and cognitive competence in early infancy. This article introduces a neurally constrained computational model of infant habituation. The model combines the two leading process theories of infant habituation into a single functional system that is grounded in functional brain circuitry. The HAB model (for Habituation, Autoassociation, and Brain) proposes that habituation behaviors emerge from the opponent, complementary processes of hippocampal selective inhibition and cortical long-term potentiation. Simulations of a seminal experiment by Fantz [Visual experience in infants: Decreased attention familiar patterns relative to novel ones. Science, 146, 668-670, 1964] are reported. The ability of the model to capture the fine detail of infant data (especially age-related changes in performance) underlines the useful contribution of neurocomputational models to our understanding of behavior in general, and of early cognition in particular.

Habituation, Psychophysiologic↗

PubMed2002

Models of habituation in infancy.

Research on infant cognition using habituation methods has sparked considerable controversy in recent years. At the core of the debates is the issue of whether infants have early (and possibly innate) conceptual understandings. This article reviews a range of computational models of habituation that might provide insights into such discussions. The models are assessed against key behavioral and neural features of habituation: temporal unfolding, exponential decrease, familiarity-to-novelty shift, habituation to repeated testing, discriminability of habitual items, selective inhibition and cortical-subcortical interactions. The review suggests that current models fail to offer comprehensive explanations of the behavioral phenomena.

Journal Article↗