Effect of Mediated Learning Intervention on Cognitive Task Performance With a Deaf Population

Abstract

Feuerstein's (1979) mediated learning theory was applied to a deaf population for investigating the cognitive modifiability of this population. The Learning Potential Assessment Device (LPAD) was employed in a pretest-posttest design for determining transfer of learning along cognitive and behavioral dimensions. Severely to profoundly deaf children (N = 45) with hearing parents and between the ages of 9 and 13 years were randomly assigned to three groups-an experimental and two comparison groups. The subjects in the experimental group received examiner mediation as designed by Feuerstein. In one control condition (elaborated), the examiner provided limited feedback to the subjects, and in the other control condition (standard), the subjects performed the tasks following traditional psychometric procedures. The experimental group performed significantly better than the comparison groups on five of the six LPAD tasks, supporting the applicability of Feuerstein's theory of mediated learning. The experimental group also demonstrated significant transfer of learning on other cognitive and behavioral measures. © 1987 American Psychological Association.