| There is a growing body of recent data suggesting that sensory and motor functions are significantly related to the overall integrity of the brain and nervous system. Although historically used as an indicator of the existence of brain damage, recent research suggests that sensory-perceptual and motor functions underlie and are relevant to higher-order cognitive functions. The present study explored the relationship between sensory-motor and cognitive functions in patients diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI). All patients were administered the Dean-Woodcock Neuropsychology Assessment System. This included cognitive and neuropsychological tests based on CHC theory, the Dean-Woodcock Sensory Motor Battery and Woodcock-Johnson Test of Cognitive Abilities, Third Edition. The purpose of the study was (1) to quantify the amount of shared variance between cognitive and sensory-motor functions and (2) to estimate the variance in cognitive functions that could be explained by sensory and motor performance. As hypothesized, canonical analysis indicated that sensory and motor functions significantly overlapped with cognitive performance, suggesting a high degree of relationship between sensory-motor functions and Gf-Gc factors. Using canonical correlation, 78% of the shared variance of sensory-motor functions was correlated with cognitive functions, and 23% of cognitive performance was predicted by sensory-motor functions. The results of the study suggested that sensory and motor functions not only underlie the ability to perceive, learn, and express information, but also the ability to reason and process information. These data was consistent with Davis, Pass, Finch, Dean, and Woodcock (2009) who examined the relationship between these measures with patients diagnosed with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. |
