Calvin's Cognitive Advants: A Case Study

Methods
Interviews
Five of Calvin’s caretakers were interviewed in an attempt to flush out his unique abilities that could be used to form systems of communication. The following interviews were conducted: Calvin’s physical therapist, Heather Macdonald B.S.C., P.T. on January 25, 2017; Calvin’s parents, Hans and Brooklyn on January 29 And February 2; and two nurses, Jamie Bartholemeo L.P.N., and CJ Cullinan R.N., M.S., C.N.S., C.R.R.N., C.H.P.N., B.S.N. on January 29 and February 8. Some names have been changed to protect privacy. Questions varied slightly based on the interviewee’s relationship to Calvin (see Appendix A). The goal of these interviews was to establish not only his unique abilities, but the best environmental circumstances

Calvin’s abilities include uninhibited movement of his legs and left hand (H. MacDonald, B.S.C., P.T., personal communication, January 25, 2017; Brooklyn, M.S., Ph.D., personal communication, February 2, 2017; Hans, J.D., LL.M., personal communication, January 29, 2017; J. Bartholemeo L.P.N., personal communication, February 8, 2017; C. J. Cullinan, R.N., M.S., C.N.S., C.R.R.N., C.H.P.N., B.S.N., personal communication, January 29, 2017) and a well-developed sense of humor (H. MacDonald, B.S.C. P.T., personal communication, January 25, 2017; Brooklyn, M.S., Ph.D., personal communication, February 2, 2017; Hans, J.D., LL.M., personal communication, January 29, 2017; J. Bartholemeo, L.P.N., personal communication, February 8, 2017; C. J. Cullinan, R.N., M.S., C.N.S., C.R.R.N., C.H.P.N., B.S.N., personal communication, January 29, 2017). The system of communication developed for Calvin is based around his skills, so it may not apply to all nonverbal people with different abilities to communicate, and it is important to take each individual’s skills into account when developing a system of

Again, due to weak neural connections, the individual may have trouble moving their limbs on command, etc. Level One testing should have improved their abilities, and the testing should be designed around their existing skills to minimize this obstacle. Another way to help the nonverbal person respond correctly is to model the response. Tapping gently on the muscle they are supposed to move or showing them what the response looks like can be very beneficial (H. MacDonald, B.S.C. P.T., personal communication, January 25, 2017). It is important to perform Level Two testing with both positive and negative correct responses over multiple trials, and allow ample response time. A positive response is one where the correct response would be “yes”, and a negative response is one where the correct response would be “no”. Good questions for this test revolve around a fact, so it is clear what the correct response is and the assumption can be made that the nonverbal person knows what the correct response