Differences in Matching Persistence Behavior During Block Design Performance Between Older Normal and Brain-Damaged Persons: A Process Analysis

A matching persistence index (MPI) has been devised which measures persistence in matching cells during block design performances. Using MPI as a basis for comparison, it was demonstrated that: a) normals and brain-injured differ in style of problem solving during block design performances; b) differences in style persist even after the brain-injured receive special training to pass block designs, i.e., when they are equated with normals in overall competence on the task. Some differences between patients with right and left hemispheric damage are pointed out and clinical and theoretical implications from the findings are discussed.