Midterm: Sensory terminology

Question 1

A successful response to an environmental challenge (Ayres, 1979). The adaptive response is an important mechanism of sensory integrative development and is a central concept in OT-SI intervention.

Answer 1

Adaptive Response

Question 2

Trademarked term referring to the body of sensory integration theory and practice developed by A. Jean Ayres in the 1960s-1980s. The intervention aspect of this work is often referred to as ASI or OT-SI intervention.

Answer 2

Aryes Sensory Integration (ASI)

Question 3

The ability of the two sides of the body to work together motorically.

Answer 3

Bilateral coordination

Question 4

The brain functions that enable coordination of functions of the two sides of the body.

Answer 4

Bilateral integration

Question 5

An internal representation of the body; the brain’s map of body parts and how they interrelate.

Answer 5

Body scheme

Question 6

The ability to conceptualize a new action to be performed in a given situation (Ayres, 1981, 1985). This aspect of praxis involves generating an idea of what to do. It precedes motor planning, which addresses the plan for how to perform the action.

Answer 6

Ideation

Question 7

A sensory modulation condition in which the individual tends to ignore or be relatively unaffected by sensory stimuli to which most people respond. In some cases, the person may have an excessive craving for intense stimuli. Used interchangeably with the term under-responsiveness.

Answer 7

Hypo-responsiveness

Question 8

A sensory modulation condition in which the individual is disturbed by ordinary sensory input and reacts to it defensively or fearfully, often with strong negative emotion, avoidance, and activation of the sympathetic nervous system. Used interchangeably with the terms over-responsiveness and defensiveness.

Answer 8

Hyper-responsiveness

Question 9

A condition in which the individual has significant difficulty with praxis. This term is usually used to refer to praxis problems of children that cannot be explained by a medical condition, developmental disability, or lack of environmental opportunity.

Answer 9

Dyspraxia

Question 10

A sensory modulation condition in which there is a tendency to react negatively and fearfully to movement experiences, particularly those involving a change in head position and movement backward or upward through space.

Answer 10

Gravitational insecurity

Question 11

The ability to distinguish between different sensory stimuli. This term is usually used to refer to the ability to make fine distinctions between stimuli within one sensory modality, such as discriminating between two points of tactile contact or differentiating between similar sounds. It is sometimes also used to include the central process of organizing temporal and spatial characteristics of sensory stimuli (Miller & Lane, 2000).

Answer 11

Sensory discrimination

Question 12

Perception of position of body parts using sensory information from muscle spindle, tendon, and joint capsule receptors. Proprioception contributes to unconscious and conscious body awareness, regulation and refinement of movement, and praxis. Sensory defensiveness A condition characterized by over-responsiveness in one or

Answer 12

Proprioception

Question 13

set of complex central nervous system processes by which neural messages that convey information about the intensity, frequency, duration, complexity, and novelty of sensory stimuli are adjusted (Miller & Lane, 2000). Behaviorally, this is manifested in the tendency to generate responses that are appropriately graded in relation to incoming sensations, neither underreacting nor overreacting to them.

Answer 13

Sensory modulation

Question 14

A condition characterized by over-responsiveness in one or more sensory systems.

Answer 14

Sensory defensiveness

Question 15

A sensory modulation condition in which the individual actively seeks out particular kinds of sensations at higher frequencies or intensities than is typical. Sensory seeking may occur for a number of different reasons, including compensation for poor perception, under-responsiveness, or over-responsiveness in one or more sensory systems, or limited movement strategies due to praxis problems. It may also be an expression of temperament or personality. Sometimes called sensation seeking.

Answer 15

Sensory seeking

Question 16

The process by which the central nervous system attends to stimuli; this usually involves an orienting response. Sensory registration problems are characterized by failure to notice stimuli that ordinarily are salient to most people.

Answer 16

Sensory registration

Question 17

The organization of sensation for use (Ayres, 1979); a complex set of processes in the central nervous system that are involved in sensory modulation, perceptual, and praxic functions. This term is also used to refer to an occupational therapy practice approach (OT-SI) designed to help children who have difficulty with these neural functions.

Answer 17

Sensory processing

Question 18

term referring generally to the handling of sensory information by neural systems, including the functions of receptor organs and peripheral and central nervous systems. This includes the processes of reception, modulation, integration, and organization of sensory stimuli, including behavioral responses to stimuli (Miller & Lane, 2000)

Answer 18

Sensory integration

Question 19

The ability to appropriately order a series of actions, an important element of motor planning. This term also is sometimes used to refer to the ability to replicate a series of sensory stimuli in the correct order.

Answer 19

Sequencing

Question 20

An aspect of praxis that is heavily dependent on somatosensory processing (Ayres, 1989). An impairment of this aspect of praxis is termed somatodyspraxia (Cermak, 1991) and is characterized by poor tactile and proprioceptive processing as well as poor praxis.

Answer 20

Somatopraxis

Question 21

A term sometimes used interchangeably with sensory over-responsiveness. It may also refer to a temperament quality or individual difference in which the person tends to notice or be distracted by stimuli that most people would not notice (Dunn, 2001). In neuroscience, the conventional use of this term is in reference to the lowest point of intensity at which a person detects the presence of a sensory stimulus (Lundy-Ekman, 2013).

Answer 21

Sensory Sensitivity

Question 22

Pertaining to the tactile and proprioceptive systems.

Answer 22

Somatosensory

Question 23

Pertaining to the inner ear receptors in the semicircular canals and otolith organs that detect head position and movement as well as gravity.

Answer 23

Vestibular

Question 24

problems are indicated by low scores on visual perception tests, along with difficulty replicating two-dimensional designs with paper and pencil, or difficulty with 
three-dimensional constructions such as building with blocks.

Answer 24

Visuopraxis

Question 25

A sensory modulation condition in which the individual fails to notice or is relatively unaffected by sensory stimuli to which most people respond. Used interchangeably with the term hypo-responsiveness.

Answer 25

Under-responsiveness

Question 26

A type of over-responsiveness in which there is a tendency to react negatively and emotionally to touch sensations (Ayres, 1979).

Answer 26

Tactile defensiveness