Connectionism history,

1. Connectionism FAQ
SPED 521 Behavior Characteristics of Students with SLD
Connectionism FAQ Etiology and Therapeutic Issues
Bridget Bengtson

2. Connectionism Defined
• A theory of mind; or information processing, which involves
functional and analog components of neurons and neuronal
networks working together in the brain to support all types of
intelligences and the identification of deficits.
• Connectionism can be generalized to apply to the fields of
artificial intelligence, cognitive psychology, cognitive science,
neuroscience, and philosophy of mind.
Wiki definition
77 subcategories for theories of mind

3. Connectionism’s History…..
• Connectionist ideas about mental associations
can be traced back to the Greek Philosopher
Aristotle
• Connectionist Theory was extended by British
Empiricists and the founders of psychology,
neuropsychologists, mathematicians,
engineers and continues to evolve with
technological resources.

4. Old and New Connectionist Theory
• Connectionist Theory has evolved to include multiple
pathways of communication between neurons that result in
complicated logarithms
• Old connectionist theory believed that one neuron produced
one action potential and one output.
• New connectionist theory recognizes the multiple input and
output capacity of a single neuron in a neuronal network
Alberta Canada Psychology Department

5. Functional Specialization and Functional Integration
Organization of the Brain’s Neuronal Networks
• The organization of the biological brain
and the organization of artificial
intelligences parallel one another in an
attempt to imitate life for technological
and biological advance in research and
clinical application for pathology.
• Functional Specialization refers to a
neuronal network’s specialization in
some aspects of cognitive, perceptual,
or sensori-motor processing.
• Functional Integration refers to a
mediated union of several specialized
areas to support one type of cognitive,
perceptual or sensori-motor
processing.
Pickle's post on computer software that "sees"

6. Psycholinguistics and the Trace Model
• Trace is an example of a connectionist model that attempts to
explain the brain’s pathway for receptive language processing
• The model was transformed into a computer program and
suggests where pathology may be compensated for by speech
and language therapists

7. Clinical Applications
• Connectionist models can be applied most readily in the areas of
speech and language where therapies have evolved to include
phonology, whole language, and memory learning applied
integration as a basis for acquisition.
• There are many resources attributing connectionism as a solid
foundation for understanding the acquisition of receptive and
expressive language skills.
Connectionism related to Speech and Language Acquisition

8. Bibliography
1. Brain Specialization. (2004). In The Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of
Psychology and Behavioral Science. Retrieved from
http://www.credoreference.com/entry/wileypsych/brain_specialization
2. Unknown, Blog. (2010, December 21). Neuronal networks [Online
Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://encefalus.com/neurology-biology/neural-networks-real-neurons/
3. Medler, David. (1998). A brief history of connectionism. Neural
Computing Surveys, 1(2), Retrieved from
http://web.uvic.ca/~dmedler/files/ncs98.pdf
4. Baker, Elise, Croot, Karen, McLeod, Sharynn, & Paul, Rhea. (2001).
Psycholinguistic models of speech development and their application to
clinical practice. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research,
44. Retrieved from
http://web.ebscohost.com.libproxy.stcloudstate.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pd
fviewer?sid=ca17414c-ef2e-44d3-a3f4-
1fa11d0149c7%40sessionmgr114&vid=2&hid=113

9. Connectionism FAQ
SPED 521 Behavior Characteristics of Students with SLD
Bridget Bengtson