فصلنامه تازه های علوم شناختی
سال بیست و چهارم شماره 3 (پیاپی 95، پاییز 1401)

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease and one of the most common myelin-destroying diseases in the central nervous system. Approximately 2.5 million people are globally affected by this disease, and the number of infected people is increasing daily. Although no known method is available for treating MS, several strategies have been proposed to improve the function of the locomotor system and prevent disease progression. Temporarily, it has been well established that traditional exercise programs, including aerobic and resistance training programs, play an essential role in increasing muscle strength, improving balance, mental health, social relationships, and self-reliance in patients with MS. On the other hand, in recent years, researchers have considered virtual technologies and have achieved beneficial results in other patients. However, few studies have been done until a decade ago to examine the effect of virtual reality-based physical exercise on the physical health of patients with MS. Therefore, the current aimed to investigate the effect of a virtual reality-based physical training course on kinematic parameters of gait, muscle strength, and balance in patients with MS.

The present study is applied in terms of purpose and quasi-experimental in terms of method. The statistical population consisted of all women with MS referred to the MS Association, Tehran, Iran, in 1400. The sampling method was purposeful and available, and eventually, 20 participants were selected based on the inclusion criteria with an age range of 20 to 40 years and divided into two groups of ten equal by simple random sampling. Then, the researcher measured the subjects of the two groups of pre-test measurements, including muscle strength, kinematic gait indices, dynamic, and static balance. Forty-eight hours after the pre-test measurements, the subjects in the training group performed sports activities according to the designed protocol for eight weeks, 3-weekly sessions, and each session for 45 minutes. Forty-eight hours after the last training session, post-test measurements were performed under the same pre-test conditions. A motion analysis device made by the American company Motion Analysis and the software of the German Cortex device with six cameras were used to measure the kinematic indices of patients' gait. A standard isokinetic dynamometer was used to assess the strength of the lower body muscles. This study measured isokinetic power in two ways, eccentric and concentric, at two angular speeds of 60 and 180 degrees per second in the superior leg. Static and dynamic equilibrium was measured using a Biodex balance meter (Model 590-32). An independent t-test was used to analyze and compare the data between groups. The significance level was considered for statistical comparisons (P<0.05).

The present study's results revealed that the mean maximum strength of knee extensor muscles at angles of 60 degrees (P=0.014) and 180 degrees (P=0.007) was significantly higher than in the control group. In the training group, the strength of the knee flexor muscles at angles of 60 degrees (P=0.003) and 180 degrees (P=0.034) was significantly higher than in the control group. Furthermore, the training group’s kinematic indices of stride length (P=0.006) and stride speed (P=0.001) were significantly higher than in the control group. In the training group, Kinematic indices of step time (P=0.031) and dual support (P=0.013) at the end of the study period were significantly lower than in the control group. Static balance in three general levels (P=0.001), anterior-posterior (P=0.032), and middle-lateral (P=0.001) in the training group were significantly better than in the control group. Correspondingly, dynamic balance at three levels (P=0.002), anterior-posterior (P=0.001), and middle-lateral (P=0.004) at the end of the study in the training group were significantly better than in the control group.
Table 3. Mean and standard deviation of muscle strength of training and control groups in the pre-test and post-test



P-Value
Training Group
Control Group
Variables


Post-test
Pre-test
Post-test
Pre-test


0.006
8.2± 64.2
6.3± 66.4
3.6± 74.1
7.2± 65.2
Step length (cm)


0.031
0.4± 0.55
0.3± 0.58
0.5± 0.52
0.8± 0.56
Step time (seconds)


0.013
8.3± 36.1
5.6± 37.6
7.2± 32.8
4.3± 36.7
Dual support (percentage)


0.001
9.7± 46.4
8.2± 47.3
7.3± 51.1
4.6± 48.6
Walking rhythm (steps per minute)

The present study concluded that eight weeks of virtual reality physical training significantly increased strength, balance, and kinematic gait indices in patients with MS. One of the main reasons for the positive effect of virtual reality-based physical exercises is the new and exciting nature of this type of exercise. Auditory and visual stimuli in virtual exercises are attractive to the patient. In addition, when the patient wins or loses, they can receive appropriate feedback information from the device, which encourages the patient to repeat the movement. In these exercises, the patient, knowing that the activity environment is a virtual environment, tries to adapt to and interact constructively with it and overcome the limitations of the real world. Thus, virtual reality has various positive features that can increase motivation, performance, satisfaction, and engagement and encourage the person to continue as much exercise as possible, including the following: 1- Frequent and intense exercises in a simple, colorful, attractive and motivating environment in the game text. 2- Introducing new games in each treatment session and increasing the game’s complexity following the development of the patient's ability level because new motor skills can lead to better learning and functional plasticity of the nervous system. 4- The activity causes sensory-motor and visual and rapid auditory feedback during or after the game.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
The present study included ethical principles such as obtaining informed consent, the confidentiality of participants keeping their information confidential, and the coding of participants' names. The study also provided sufficient information on how to conduct the research. In addition, participants were free to leave the study at any phase of this study.
Authors contributions
Article writing: Somayeh Taheri; Analysis of statistical findings and scientific and literary editing of the article: Shahab Parvinpour and Marzieh Balali.
Funding
The amount of ten million Rials from the financial resources of Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch, was considered for this research.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank all the participants in this study for their cooperation and sincere cooperation, as well as all the managers and staff of MS centers, Tehran, Iran who cooperated with us in collecting the findings of the present study. It is worth mentioning that this article is taken from the PhD dissertation of the first author with the code 14350402972008 at Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch.
Conflicts of interests
The authors of the present article state that there is no conflict of interest in writing this research.

Spatial abilities are essential high-level cognitive skills. Mental rotation is one of the spatial abilities. Mental rotation is the ability to visualize a two or three-dimensional shape, rotate it around an imaginary axis, and represent it after the rotation. One of the most critical factors influencing mental rotation is gender differences. Gender differences in mental rotation are more related to brain lateralization. Addressing gender differences in the ability of mental rotation in the design of architectural spaces leads to the growth and development of cognitive abilities in people, the improvement of spatial visual abilities, and the improvement of people's sense of belonging to spaces; as a result, it becomes necessary to achieve a criterion for the design of architectural spaces suitable for gender from the perspective of mental rotation. The lack of mental rotation studies and their effectiveness in designing architectural spaces is one of the reasons for the necessity and importance of this research. The research hypothesized that there is a significant relationship between the comparisons of gender differences from the perspective of mental rotation in the design of architectural spaces. The purpose of the present study is to compare the performance of mental rotation by considering gender for the design of spaces and architectural plans. Accordingly, the current study aims to answer the question of the relationship between the comparison of gender differences from the perspective of mental rotation and architectural space design.

The purpose of the research was the applied method, and it’s from is descriptive-analytical. The statistical participants include one hundred participants, among whom 50 Iranian women and 50 non-specialist men aged 15 to 55 were selected by a voluntary non-random sampling method. This research design and data collection processes were done in five stages. In the first step of designing the questionnaire, various sources and research in architecture and cognition were studied and reviewed. In the second stage, according to the results of previous research, the main components were identified. In the third stage, to design the questions, the members of mental rotation were taken in the design of the idea, and the demographic data such as age and educational status of the participants was taken into account. In the fourth stage, the content validity of the questionnaire was checked by architectural and cognitive experts. The fifth stage was the preliminary implementation of the questionnaire. The purpose of this stage was to modify the questionnaire and adapt it to gender differences in mental rotation. For this purpose, the questions were implemented on ten men and women, and their problems and shortcomings were solved. After solving the issues, the final form was prepared and ready for implementation. Finally, people received the final form of the compiled questionnaire. The questioning was done using a five-scale Likert questionnaire. The number of six questions for each gender was provided to the subjects through internet questionnaires on social networks. The respondents were then asked to answer the questions based on the mental ideal spatial image, and as quickly as possible without affecting the correctness or accuracy of the answers. Before the questions were raised, a form was shown to the participants about how to cooperate, the confidentiality of information, and the declaration of consent for the cooperation of individuals. The criterion for entering the research was not having a severe mental disorder and mental disability in both groups. Data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis in SPSS-26 software.

Cronbach's alpha calculated in this questionnaire is equal to 0.66 for men and 0.542 for women, which means that the data of the questionnaire is appropriate. According to the Pearson correlation coefficient of the questions, it is concluded that the significance level of the obtained correlation is less than 0.05, so the relationship is significant. The null hypothesis is rejected, and with 95% confidence, it can be said that there is a direct and meaningful relationship between the influence of gender differences and architectural space design from the perspective of rotation. The results of multiple regression analysis in men show that the significance level of F obtained is 0.904 with degrees of freedom 5 and 44 lower than 0.05. Based on the value of R2, 9.3% of the effectiveness component of gender differences is caused by factors affecting architectural space design from the perspective of mental rotation. The results of the multiple regression analysis presented in women also show that the significance level of F obtained is 1.671 with a degree of freedom of 5 and 44 lower than 0.05. In relation to the value of R2, 16% of the component of the impact of gender differences is caused by factors affecting architectural space design from the perspective of mental rotation. The beta coefficient was also calculated to determine the intensity and direction of the practical components' influence on the architectural space design from the standpoint of mental rotation on gender differences. In line with Friedman's table of average ratings, each architectural space design component's rating is different from the mental rotation perspective. Based on this, for men, the hypothesis of an ideal space in depth, with the highest score, and the most significant event in the center, with the lowest score, also for women, preference for a space based on reality and technical, with the highest score and the most significant event around, with the lowest score, it is among the physical components.
Table 1. The results of Friedman's analysis of the effectiveness of gender differences and architectural space design from the perspective of mental rotation



P-value
Degrees of Freedom
Likelihood Ratio
Number
Gender


0.003
5
3.768
50
Men


0.001
5
9.220
50
Women

Mental rotation is investigated and studied as one of the most fundamental parts of spatial perception. Furthermore, mental rotation is the ability to visualize a two or three-dimensional figure, rotate it around an imaginary axis, and represent it after the rotation. According to the statistical data analysis of the current study, a significant relationship was found between mental rotation and the design of architectural plans based on gender. The results of this research provided the possibility to discover the differences and similarities of spaces based on gender differences in mental rotation and also helped to discover the structure and patterns of people's spatial perceptions. In addition, such research provides indications for further investigation of plans based on cognitive factors. It is possible to propose architectural space plans suitable for mental rotation regarding the results of this research so that the cognitive component of gender differences is considered. Spaces related to women's activities, such as bedrooms, kitchens, commercial spaces, clothes and the like, at the level of the surface and around, so that it can be seen by walking, as well as based on reality and technical along with long routes, in order and be designed with a large rotation angle. Correspondingly, the spaces related to men's activities, such as TV rooms and commercial food spaces should be designed in a level of depth, in the center in an imaginative way, along with short paths, as random spaces, and with the lowest angle of rotation.

Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
All the participants received information about the research, its steps, and how to conduct it. Before conducting the research, it was explained to the participants about the confidentiality of the information and the optional participation in the research. The participants were free to withdraw from the cooperation at any study stage.

Authors' contributions
The authors participated in all stages of this study, including in the design and creativity of the selecting research topic, research implementation, raw data analysis, design and implementation of statistical tests, and initial writing and revision of the article.

Funding
This research is not under the financial support of any institution or organization.

Acknowledgments
The authors are deeply grateful for the compassionate guidance of Bent Al-Hoda Sadeghi, Armati Rahmani, Marjan Dadkhah Tehrani, and Roozbeh Naghshineh.
Conflicts of interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest.

The foundations of knowledge, skills, and attitudes are formed from the preschool age. Hence, it is necessary to pay attention to any educational development and innovation from the early years of childhood. One of the main factors of teaching and learning is the level of attention of learners to the subject of the lesson. Indeed, attention includes information selection, integration of selected information, memory processes, and scheduling of responses. Deficiency in attention function will lead to deficiency in all purposeful activities from the simplest to the most complex. As psychologists emphasize that the initial stage of any learning begins with attention and insufficient attention to the learning impairs individual learning. Numerous studied have been done on the attention abilities in preschool and elementary school children. However, so far, a comprehensive study has not examined the evolution of the mentioned abilities in preschool and elementary school children with natural development, and in this regard, a gap in research is felt. Thus, such research helps examine the evolution of children's attention, executive function, and emotional recognition. The current study aimed to investigate the evolution of attention-related abilities in preschool and elementary school children with normal development.

The present study was descriptive and comparative. The study population included all preschool and elementary school students in schools in districts 1, 2, and 3 of Tehran and the 2018-2019 academic year. Four hundred children were selected from these children using the cluster multi-stage random sampling method. In order to select the sample, first from preschool and elementary school centers in Tehran, three districts were randomly selected, and then from among these three districts, three schools were randomly selected. Then, two classes were randomly selected from each school in each grade. After that, according to the inclusion and exit criteria of the research, 410 students from these classes were selected as a sample group with natural evolution. Inclusion criteria in this group were: being a pre-school and elementary school student in the selected area, conscious satisfaction, and desire to participate in research. The N-Back test, which is a task of measuring cognitive performance related to executive actions and was first introduced in 1985 by Kirchner, was administrated. Since this task involves storing and manipulating cognitive information, it is well-known for measuring working memory performance. It is done using simple visual stimuli such as letters of the alphabet or shapes. Reliability coefficients in the range of 0.54 to 0.84 showed the high validity of this test. The validity of this test is also very acceptable as an indicator of working memory performance were used to collect data. One-way analysis of variance and Tukey post hoc test by SPSS-22 was used to analyze the data.

Findings from demographic data showed that among 410 subjects, 199 (48.5%) were girls, and 211 (51.5%) were boys. The study subjects had an age range of 5 to 11 years, among which eight years had the highest frequency (15.6%). In order to determine evolution attention abilities in preschool and elementary school children with normal and abnormal development, an analysis of variance test was used. Before presenting the results of the analysis of variance, the assumptions of parametric tests (normality of data distribution, homogeneity of variance, and equality of variances assumption) were evaluated. First, the normality of data distribution was checked and confirmed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (P>0.05). The Levene’s test also tested the assumption of homogeneity of variance, which showed the results for the variables of ability to attention (F=2.56, P=0.194) were not significant. Thus, the assumption of homogeneity of variance was observed. Besides, the results of the Mauchly's sphericity test showed that the equality of variances assumption was observed in the variables of ability to attention (P<0.05). The results showed attention abilities in children with normal development as they age. The results of the analysis of variance showed that participants with different ages have different attention abilities and differences between different ages in all components of attention abilities, including first-stage reaction time, second-stage reaction time, third-stage reaction time, first-stage error, second-stage error, the third-stage error is significant at the level of 0.001. Tukey post hoc test was used to compare ages in each component (first-stage reaction time, second -stage reaction time, third-stage reaction time, first-stage error, second-stage error, and third-stage error). The post hoc test results showed that older age groups show significantly higher accuracy and less reaction time than lower age groups.

The results of this study indicated that attentional abilities in students are age-dependent and, with age increase, attentional abilities grow and develop. According to the present study’s results, students' attention ability has an essential role in improving their social relationships and academic performance. Therefore, examining and strengthening it in elementary school ages, around four to eight years old and even up to 12 years old when the development of forehead parts is complete, has a vital role in academic success. On the other hand, it is suggested that attention abilities be examined through standardized tests and the results be recorded in the students' files. Like other studies, the present study has some limitations. Among the limitations of the present study, we can mention the present study’s design and the use of cross-sectional methods, which will not lead to the stability of results. Besides, among the other limitations of the present study, we can mention the limited research on preschool and elementary school students in Tehran, Iran, so it is suggested that other similar research be done with different occupational groups in other cities and with different cultures to remove the limit of generalizability of the results.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
This research meets guidelines for ethical conduct and report of research. The participants signed the informed consent form and had the right to leave the study at any time. They were assured that all information would remain confidential and would only be used for research purposes. All subjects received information about the study at any time could leave the study. For privacy reasons, the subjects' details were not recorded.

Authors’ contributions
Mahtab Norouzian and Vahid Nejati: Defined the concepts in choosing the subject and designing the study. Mahtab Norouzian: Collected and analyzed data. Fariborz Bagheri: Writing and drafting. All authors performed a search of the research literature and background and discussed the results and participated in preparing and editing the article’s final version.
Funding
This research did not receive any specific grant from the public, commercial, or non-profit funding agencies. This research was extracted from the PhD Dissertation of the first author, in the Department of Psychology, faculty of psychology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Acknowledgments  
The authors are grateful to all participants in the research and those who have facilitated the implementation of the present research.
Conflict of Interest
The author declared no conflict of interest

Psychological distress in the description of individual psychopathology refers to a set of symptoms of depression, anxiety, perceived stress, and maladaptive psychological functioning at the level of stressful life events. Anxiety, stress, and depression are some of the biggest problems in human life today, and having countless negative consequences can disrupt the ordinary course of life from various personal, social, occupational, family, economic, and other dimensions. Current studies show that early painful experiences make a person susceptible to various psychological damages in adulthood, including anxiety, stress, and depression. Trauma is an event or experience that is emotionally disturbing and destructive and interferes with a person's ability to cope. In the meantime, the issue that comes to mind is that alexithymia can play a mediating role in the relationship between childhood trauma and psychological distress. Alexithymia refers to the inability to self-regulate emotions and process cognitive information, emotional information, and emotion regulation. Based on this and considering the high prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress among people and its role in reducing performance and the need to investigate the dimensions and factors involved in this problem, this study aimed to determine the mediating role of alexithymia in the relationship between psychological distress and childhood trauma in students.

The research method was descriptive correlational, in which the relationship between research variables is analyzed through path analysis. This model used psychological distress as independent variables, alexithymia as mediated variables, and childhood trauma as dependent variables. The statistical population included all students between the ages of 20 and 40 in Tehran, Iran, in the academic year 2019. The sample of this study included 305 students in Tehran who were voluntarily selected. The criteria for entering the research were: being a 20 and 40- years-old student in Tehran, signing informed consent to participate in the research, and having knowledge about the research goals. Besides, the criteria for exclusion were: having a history of psychiatric disorder, physical illness, and disability affecting a person's life. In order to observe the ethical principles of the research, all subjects received information about the research. Participants were assured that all information would remain confidential and only be used for research purposes. For privacy reasons, the subjects' details were not recorded. In the end, all of them received informed consent. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (1988), the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (1995), and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (1994) were used to measure the research variables. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistical methods (mean, standard deviation, frequency, and percentage) and the Pearson correlation using SPSS software version 24. To evaluate the fit of the structural equation model (In the method of structural equations, multivariate normality is one of the essential assumptions that must be considered. In this study, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to test the assumption of normality) several indicators include: Goodness of Fit Index (GFI), Root Mean Squared Error of Approximation (RMSEA), Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Tucker-Lewis (TLI), Bentler–Bonett normed fit index (NFI (were used by AMOS-26 software. In this study, a significance level of less than 0.01 was considered.

The average age of the participant group was 32.19 (standard deviation=10.82). Fifty-four participants were 25 years old and younger. Approximately 48.2% of the participants (147 people) were in the age range of 26 to 35, and 23.6% were in the age range of 36 to 45 years (72 people). First, the normality of data distribution was checked and confirmed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test (P<0.05). The results showed the correlation coefficient between childhood trauma with depression (0.51), anxiety (0.49) and stress (0.36), alexithymia with depression (0.47), anxiety (0.49) and stress (0.49), and the correlation coefficient between childhood trauma and alexithymia (0.29) is significant at the 0.01 level. According to the evaluation indicators of model Fit, especially the ratio of the Chi-square value to the degree of freedom equal to 1.87, GFI index equal to 0.92, AGFI index equal to 0.92, CFI index equal to 0.99, TLI index equal to with 0.86, IFI index equal to 0.93, NFI index equal to 0.94 and RMSEA index equal to 0.005, it can be said that the model has a good fit. The coefficient of the direct path of childhood trauma to anxiety (P≥0.001, β=0.38) and alexithymia to anxiety (P≥0.001, β=0.38) is significant at a level less than 0.001. The coefficient of the direct path of childhood trauma to depression (P≥0.001, β=0.41) and alexithymia to depression (P≥0.001, β=0.36) is significant at the level of 0.001. The coefficient of the direct path of childhood trauma to stress (P≥0.001, β=0.24) and alexithymia to stress (P≥0.001, β=0.41) is significant at the level of 0.001. Childhood trauma and alexithymia explain a total of 29% of the variance of the anxiety variable. Childhood trauma and alexithymia explain a total of 29% of the variance of the depression variable, childhood trauma, and alexithymia together explain 25% of the variance of the stress variable.

In general, the results of the present study showed that trauma experience could predict anxiety, depression, and stress in students through the mediation of alexithymia. Indeed, the results of the present study show that the experience of trauma, and emotional distress increases the prevalence of anxiety, stress, and depression in the studied students. In the end, two categories of theoretical and practical consequences can be mentioned in the current research. At the level of theoretical implications, the findings of this research can lead to the development of knowledge in the field of factors affecting the creation and continuation of anxiety, stress, and depression disorders. At the level of practical consequences, it is recommended to investigate alexithymia and trauma experience in people with anxiety, stress and depression disorders, because these psychological variables make the treatment and recovery process difficult for these people. Among   the research limitations, this study can mention the use of only the questionnaire, the limited population, and the cross-sectional statistical sample of the research. Therefore, using other assessment methods such as interviews and observations along with questionnaires, the expansion of the statistical population and sample, and longitudinal studies can more appropriately explain the reasons for psychological distress.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
In order to comply with the ethical principles of the research, all subjects received information about the research. They were assured that all information would remain confidential and only be used for research purposes. In order to respect privacy, the details of the subjects were not recorded. In the end, informed consent was obtained from all of them. Notably, this research has the code of ethics IR.IAUBA.REC.1397.046 from the Ethics Committee of Islamic Azad University, Bandar Abbas Branch, Iran.
Authors’ contributions
Mahsa Mahmoudi & Haydeh Saberi: Defined the concepts in choosing the subject and designing the study. Haydeh Saberi: Performed a search of the research literature and background. Mahsa Mahmoudi: Collected and analyzed data. Simin Bashardoust. Writing and drafting: All authors discussed the results and participated in preparing and editing the article’s final version.
Funding
This research did not receive any specific grant from the public, commercial, or non- profit funding agencies. This research was extracted from the PhD Thesis of the first author, in the Department of Psychology, faculty of psychology, Rudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Acknowledgments
In the end, the authors are grateful to all participants in the research and all those who have facilitated the implementation of the research.
Conflict of Interest
The author declared no conflict of interest.

The field of educational neuroscience is growing rapidly with the support of international organizations, professional journals, and academic programs to become an interesting and exciting subject for both academic researchers and professional educators. The field's ultimate goal is to bring together insights from neuroscience, psychology, cognitive science, and education to enhance teaching and learning (10, 13). However, the scholar's efforts in this direction have not been very successful or have not yet achieved the desired outcomes. Several studies have recently shown that many teachers are still not well trained in translating brain knowledge into pedagogical practice and the neuromyths are still believed by many teachers in different countries (18-29).
To this understanding, during the last two decades, an increasing existed emphasis on incorporating the science of learning into teacher professional development programs to effectively enhance teachers’ neuroeducational literacy and lower the misleading influence of neuromyths on their understandings of learning and pedagogy (26). This issue is cricial because designing effective education programs for in-service teacher professional development is now widely recognized as the most critical of many important factors that combine to create the overall quality of education.
Although several studies have been published on the importance of educational neuroscience for educational policy and practice (9-15), few species have translated education neuroscience for teachers (40-42). Similarly, educational neuroscience training has not yet been included in teacher-training programs or professional development (33). To this end, the present study was conducted to develop a curriculum framework that would improve the neuroeducational literacy of teachers as a part of their professional knowledge.

The present study is a systematic review (30) of the literature that has focused on the concepts and issues related to teachers’ neuroeducational literacy. To select the documents, the peer-review articles and books written in English searched using the terms: “Neuroeducation and Teacher”, “Teachers and Educational Neuroscience”, “Mind, Brain and Education and Teachers”, “Education, Neuroscience, and Teachers Training”, “Neuroscience for teachers”. The articles were searched using keywords through the ERIC and PubMed databases, and the books by title through the Google Books website. The initial search identified 147 articles in ERIC and 447 articles in PubMed. Since several articles were indexed jointly in both databases, a total of 512 articles were considered as a collection of research articles. In addition, in search of the books, 32 books were identified on Google Books website. After an overview of the titles and topics of the selected sources, only the items selected were related to the research problem. As a result of this process, eight articles and three related books were identified as being of sufficiently high quality for this systematic review. These documents were first reviewed with a brief overview to obtain a general understanding of the topics. Subsequently, each was carefully analyzed, and key points related to the research topic were extracted from them. In the next step, the key points extracted from all the reviewed sources were combined and organized according to the purpose of the research in the categories of objectives, content, learning opportunities, and assessment, which were the basic components or elements of a curriculum design.

The proposed curriculum framework derived from this study was constructed by adopting a systematic review of the previous literature, which has predominantly focused on educational neuroscience training for teachers (31-42). The developed framework, so-called “NeroEduTeacher Program”, characterizes the four primary components (i.e., instructional objectives, curriculum content, instructional strategies, and assessment procedures), which collectively form the essential components for a curriculum design aimed to enhance the neuroeducational literacy of teachers. It starts with learning outcomes, moves to syllabus planning, and incorporates learning experiences, followed by assessing participants’ performance.
In terms of learning outcomes, the NeroEduTeacher program is systematically designed to extend teachers’ knowledge and understanding of essential concepts, and terminology used in educational neuroscience to improve teachers’ literacy and awareness of those aspects of neuroeducational knowledge, which are relevant to their professional practice, to develop teachers’ understanding of the neuroeducation-supported principles underlying learning and effective strategies for teaching derived from those principles, to extend teachers’ familiarity with educational neuroscience resources and materials useful for their teaching profession,  to develop teachers’ skills and attitudes to evaluate the current neuroeducation knowledge, and, where appropriate, to adapt or create new useful knowledge.
To achieve these learning outcomes, the curriculum syllabus should contain coverage of eleven units, including “the foundations for educational neuroscience”, “neuroeducational research methodology”, “neuroplasticity and brain development”, “social cognition”, “computational modeling”, “language development and literacy acquisition”, “mathematics cognition”, “scientific reasoning”, “arts and aesthetics”, “developmental disabilities”, and “neuromythology”.
Teaching the proposed syllabus successfully requires adopting a situated learning approach and providing a variety of authentic learning opportunities to create a learning environment that encourages problem-solving, engagement, and active collaboration. A need to provide a variety of learning opportunities existed for teachers situated in a context in which teaching takes place. There is also a need to thoughtfully provide teachers with neuroeducational bases of teaching at a level that is clear and easily understood yet does not compromise scientific validity. The program needs a duration of 55 to 70 hours of intensive training to show reasonable changes in the learning outcomes.
Teachers need to participate effectively in the course and meet the assessment requirements. They are required to show knowledge and understanding of relevant concepts and principles to contain in the curriculum syllabus through performance-based or authentic assessment procedures. Teachers need to be able to draw on this knowledge and understand to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses and develop solutions.

Educational neuroscientists strongly suggest that teaching the basics, concepts, and findings of educational neuroscience should be the focus of teacher training programs to equip teachers with valid neuroeducational knowledge and to reduce the spread of neuromyths. Accordingly, the present study, by combining the results of previous studies proposes a curriculum- the NeroEduTeacher program- to promote teachers' neuroeducational literacy during their in-service training courses as a part of teachers’ professional knowledge development. The program has the potential to promote teachers’ neuroeducational literacy and consequently reduce the spread of neuromyths among teachers. Therefore, it is suggested that this literature study on the matter be followed by an expert survey, then a case study, and ending with analyses of teachers’ efficacy and their attitudes toward the program.

Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
Ethical approval is not required since the data synthesized in this systematic review are the results extracted from m already published studies.
Authors’ contributions
The author of this paper has not received any contribution in the writing process.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the present research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Acknowledgments
The author thanks Mahmoud Talkhabi for his guidance and constructive feedback on reporting the study findings.
Conflict of Interest
The author declared no conflict of interest.

The brain is one of the most complex and active organs of the body, constantly working and analyzing information and data of the body. Besides, it is responsible for monitoring and regulating the voluntary and involuntary function of other organs of the body. Nevertheless, with aging, people become less mentally active, and the brain gradually gets smaller and smaller, to the point where diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and stroke occur.
Alzheimer's disease is a progressive and irreversible brain disease, slowly destroying memory and thinking power, and even depriving a person of the ability to do simple things. It mainly affects those parts of the brain that control memory and language, and over time, it damages more parts of the brain. When this condition happens, more symptoms are seen and the disease worsens. Alzheimer's disease is known as one of the most common diseases of old age, which has a significant impact on people’s everyday lives, causing disability and eventually death. Early detection of Alzheimer's disease can help patients with the disease to slow the progress of the disease by changing their lifestyle. Undoubtedly, if Alzheimer's disease is diagnosed a decade earlier than normal, it will simply be as easy to control. Doctors diagnose Alzheimer's disease with the help of brain MRI, and the use of these images with the help of machine learning methods has become one of the practical solutions for early diagnosing of Alzheimer's disease in recent years.
Although machine learning methods have achieved remarkable accuracy in this area, they still face challenges. Thus, in recent years, to overcome the challenges of machine learning methods, deep learning networks have become a steady foot for medical image classification research. Furthermore, in many studies, it has been used for various applications. The goal of deep learning is to learn the features of high-level hierarchical learning from the features of the lower level, that is, in the elementary layers of simple features such as edges and lines, and in the middle layers the corners, edges, and then higher level features.

In the present study, the convolutional neural network is used, which consists of three layers: convolutional, integration, and fully connective. Correspondingly, a fuzzy layer was used to improve the accuracy of the extracted features between the integration and fully connective layers. In the first step, the image of the brain was given as input to the convolution layer. Then, the fuzzy layer performed the initial distribution of input data in the form of fuzzy clusters. Finally, the last fully connected layers perform the classification and assign the result class label to the corresponding group of clusters. Indeed, given that it is still difficult to distinguish boundaries between classes in the classification of images of complex objects or complex real-world scenes, these classifications are still uncertain or inaccurate, so using a fuzzy layer was expected to improve classification accuracy. Because, unlike classical classification, fuzzy classification means that adjacent classes have a continuous boundary with overlapping regions, and the classified object was determined by the degree to which it belongs to different classes. The purpose of combining CNN and fuzzy logic is for the system to be able to deal with more human-like cognitive uncertainties and to process vague and inaccurate information. In this research, the cross-validationwas based on the k-fold method, where k=10 was considered.

In this study, the experiments use the standard ADNI dataset, which is the most authoritative medical imaging dataset to design and test automatic methods for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease. The MRI dataset included images of 302 people under the age of 75. This group included 211 patients with Alzheimer's disease and 91 healthy individuals. Certain subjects were scanned at different time points and their imaging data were considered separately in the experiments. Evaluating criteria of accuracy, precision, and recall were used to evaluate the proposed model.
The results of the proposed model using the criteria of accuracy, call and F score are reported in table 1.
Table 1. Evaluate the performance of the proposed

Accuracy
Precision
Recall
F-measure
Model


88.35
87.23
86.65
85.43
No use of fuzzy classification


99.61
96.51
95.32
95.61
Proposed

As shown Table 1, the proposed method was compared with and without using fuzzy logic. Accordingly, the results showed that the use of fuzzy logic in all criteria of accuracy, precision, recall, and F-measure, obtained the values of 99.61, 96.51, 95.32, and 95.61, respectively, improved the diagnosis of both groups.
The results of comparing the proposed method were obtained using several other methods such as deep learning, a combination of genetics and support vector machine, a combination of the traditional neural network, perceptron statistical method, unsupervised deep learning, support vector machine, and a combination of shallow networks. As can be seen, the proposed CNN model and fuzzy classification for Alzheimer's diagnosis has achieved 99.61% more satisfaction diagnosis than other related studies to classify Alzheimer's disease and healthy patients.

In conclusion, this study aimed to present an intelligent method of combining CNN and a fuzzy classifier for the early detection of Alzheimer's disease using MRI images. The experimental results were performed on the standard ADNI dataset. The proposed model based on the criteria of accuracy, precision, recall, and F-score, with values of 99.61, 96.51, 95.32, and 95.61, respectively, improved the diagnosis of healthy groups with Alzheimer's disease. It was also observed that the proposed model has higher accuracy than other methods of diagnosing Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, it can be concluded that the use of a fuzzy classifier has significantly increased the model's accuracy.
Ethical Consideration
Compliance with ethical guidelines
The manner of reporting or announcing the research’s results ensures the observance of the material and intellectual rights of the relevant elements (testable, researcher, research, and relevant organization).
Authors’ contributions
Hossein Porgholi: This article was extracted from the master's thesis of the first author who was responsible for project implementation, sample collection, holding analysis sessions, review of the results, and initial writing of the article. Elham Askari: She was the coressponding author and mentor of the implementation stages of the research, and she was also in charge of revising the article.
Funding
The first author funded this study.
Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to the Islamic Azad University, Fouman, Shaft Branch, Guilan, for supporting and approving this research with code 162416439.
Conflict of Interest
The author declares no conflict of interest.

With the advancement of knowledge and technology, multimedia service for education has developed. The cognitive theory of multimedia learning proposes the principle that helps multimedia designers and e-learning in produce optimal textual, graphic, visual, and auditory presentations. Each principle is based on comparingthe results of multimedia learning research in different situations and determines how much each is effective in bettering students' learning.
The current research used five principles of principles mentioned in the Mayer multimedia learning book. In recent decades, many scientific studies have been aimed at modeling computational mechanisms in concentration orientation. One of the most overlooked issues is the audience's attention to adaptingthe produced multimedia to their original design goals. In this research, using visual attention models, this study try to predict the audience's attention to increase the educational impact of these videos by providing scientific solutions to improve the quality of educational multimedia.
Computational visual attention models of human brain-inspired can fill this gap and assist as a powerful tool for evaluating educational multimedia audience points of interest. The models used in this study are the four types of bottom-up visual attention with the best performance (6, 10, 20, 23), effectively improving and enhancing the educational quality in multimedia production.

In this study, the tests using the bottom-up visual attention models on educational multimedia based on five principles of the 12 Mayer principles (Five principles of Mayer are: Coherence principle to remove sub-elements and unnecessary elements, the Signaling Principle for signs to make the essential elements more salient, Redundancy principle through graphics and narrative to learn better, Spatial resolution providing words and images closely together on one page, and Temporal resolution providing words and images close together at the same time). Besides, the results were examined based on each model and type of experiment. Multimedia was evaluated to determine the locations of the audience's attention by the eye-tracking, and its results were used to evaluate the accuracy of the forecast results by computational models of visual attention.
This multimedia educational study designed with the help of the computational visual attention models is evaluated to determine what parts the human user will pay attention to when watching the video. Using computational models of visual attention, the current study attempt to identify the locations of the audience's attentionand compare them with the data obtained from an eye-tracking system to increase its impact on the audience and improve the quality of the produced multimedia.
Visual attention computational models are typically confirmed compared to the eye movements of human observers. Eye movements convey essential information about cognitive processes, such as reading, visual search, and scene perception. Accordingly, this study assumes that there is a model that produces a saliency map S, then compares and evaluates it with eye movements G (or fixation by the human eye). The evaluation of criteria used (including AUC, LCC, NSS, and SSIM) to determine the accuracy of predicting the locations determined by the model with the audience's locations.
Each of the computational models of visual attention is implemented and evaluated based on the visual saliency obtained from the multimedia produced based on the first five principles of Mayer. The values obtained are based on the above criteria in the work method for each shot (the sum of consecutive frames to create a scene).
Notably, the multimedia dimensions are 640*480 pixels and 30 frames per second.

The ground-truth saliency map (GSM) for each frame was obtained by the three participants (visual health), who viewed a five-minute video (30 frames per second) in free observation mode. The video contains 48 shots and 5069 frames. This way, wherever the audience saccades on the point, it is the point of fixation in GSM. Then, for a more significant adaptation to the human vision region, a Gaussian filter is applied to it, and the final GSM is produced for each frame.
Some features were used, including color, intensity, orientation, and motion (obtained from the optical flow method). Furthermore, in some scenes, around some areas of the image, no visual attention is attracted and all the user's attention to the central part is for two reasons; The first reason is the lack of information in some areas of the image (center-surround difference), and the second reason is that individuals focus on the center of the image (center bias).
To examine the signaling principle in which the designer aimed at attracting the viewer's attention to the expression, the user's attention is attracted to the desired mark. The reasons for the audience's attention are the motion of the mark and the center-surround difference. These demonstrated that by better marking, the audience can be better attracted to the desired location and increase the learning effect.
The two consecutive frames in which the letters appear in time and place attracts visual attention, which is the effect of the object's motion in the two consecutive frames and follows the audience's desired content based on the spatial and temporal resolution principle.
When in the principles of signaling, coherence, and redundancy, the purpose of the multimedia designer is to attract the audience's attention to parts of the text and image. However, due to the lack of difference between the background and the thinness of the text and the sign, the audience's visual attention is not well received, and using visual attention models, changes such as creating a difference with the surroundings, proximity to the center, and motion the frames are made that attract better attention.
Overall, evaluated frames with the saliency maps of each model used for each shot, the highest adaptation to human eye data. In addition, the best performance in frames with a center-surround difference on the Itti et al. model (10), in the center bias frames of the GBVS model (23), and the frames with motion, and the same superpixels are the Wang model (20).

This study used models available in bottom-up visual attention to improve educational content. According to the obtained results, the computational models of visual attention can be used as a criterion for predicting the attractive vision of the audience. Although the models do not have the same results, they have a good performance and are close together in predicting areas of human attention, it is essential to increase the quality of educational multimedia using the possibility of these models.
Using visual or combination models of vision or combination of the audience can be anticipated, and by putting the necessary content in the pre-explained location by the model of visual attention, quality, and multimedia impact can be increased.
As can be seen in the experiments, a model alone does not have high efficiency in all cases, and the models have different results depending on the type of algorithm and the features used. By combining mentiond models, they can help improve the ultimate performance.
In the following, the current research strives to improve the values of these criteria by improving the above-mentioned model or creating a new computing model to adapt to actual data. Correspondingly, examining brain signals and the effect of attracting attention methods on cognitive reduction, as well as the provision of software that can be used to evaluate the multimedia education produced can be considered for future tasks.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
This article is taken from the Master's thesis of the first author. The present study was conducted in accordance with ethics such as the confidentiality of the participants and the participants were free to leave the study. In this study, sufficient information on the research is provided and the results of honest, accurate and complete research have been published.
Authors' contributions
Majid Shabani: This article is taken from the Master's Thesis of the first author that was responsible for researching, implementing, and analyzing the results. Alireza Bosaghzadeh: Corresponding author guiding implementing the research and reform of the article. Reza Ebrahimpour: Provided guidance in the method of working and data analysis. Seyed Hamid Amiri: Guiding implementing the research and reform of the article. Keyhan Latifzadeh: Responsible for researching and collecting samples.
Funding
This article was supported by the Cognitive Sciences & Technologies Council with Research Code 6880, approved 08/10/1397, and the research project of Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University with contract number 39110.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank all the participants in this study, who had ongoing participation, and respectable professors who provided guidance and advice.
Conflicts of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Deep Neural Network (DNN) models are one of the most dominant unsupervised feature extraction methods that have been widely studied recently. Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) combine learned features with input data and use 2D convolutional layers, and this architecture is usually well suited for processing 2D data such as images. Convolutional neural networks work by extracting features directly from images and do not require feature extraction by an observer. The corresponding properties are not predefined. Convolutional neural networks learn to recognize different features of an image using tens or hundreds of hidden layers. Each hidden layer increases the complexity of the learned image features. The initially hidden layers can learn how to detect edges, and the later layers  discover how to identify more complex shapes, particularly the shape of the object we are trying to detect.
Generally, CNNs in each layer recognize more detailed features from an image that conclude, analyze, and then decide.

The basis of this research is based on DenseNet deep learning architecture. DenseNet architecture consists of several dense transmission blocks placed between two adjacent dense blocks. Each layer uses all the previous feature maps as input. This new model provides elevatedaccuracy with a reasonable number of network parameters for object detection tasks.
With changes in settings, these algorithms achieved high accurate results in several datasets used for this purpose. Sets of features are collected in a flat layer and reconstructed layer by layer as a latent space of an Autoencoder network with UpSampling layers.
In a joint project with the support of the American Science Foundation, Stanford University, and several other scientific research centers, a website for the free sharing of brain and cognitive science data under the openfMRI was launched in 2011 and  then  renamed openNeuro. Accordingly, these data were related to confidence in perceptual decisions, which were simultaneously recorded in EEG and fMRI.
The task used during data recording was the Random Moving Dots (RDM) test, in which healthy volunteers were asked to judge the direction in which dots were moving across the screen.
This study used  the independent component analysis (ICA) methodto clean the existing EEG signals in the Python programming language using the fastICA algorithm. The self-sufficient analysiscomponents are called the separation of independent sources mixed by an unknown combination system. Besides, the the separation should be done only based on the observation of the combined signals, i.e. , both the combination system and the primary signals are unknown.
The Gramian Angular Sum/Difference Fields method and Markov Transfer Fields were used to reduce the size of the input without losing the basic data and to convert the EEG signal into images.

The test data in this deep neural network are tensorial, consisting of MTF images with a size of 64×64×3 and an fMRI image matrix with a size of 70×70×32. The total available data are 16962, and the number of test data is 11873, which for this network, the ratio of test data to test data is 70-30. GPUs from Google's Collaboratory service were used to process these number calculations.
The total number of parameters is 1593175, of which 1541275 parameters, are trained in the network.  The average accuracy of the model was 85.86% during 1000 iterations (Figure 1).








Latent







Figure 1. Model implementation steps

The above method using fastICA, MTF, and DenseNet deep learning algorithm and combining it with an autoencoder network is new for reconstructing brain images. According to the obtained results, it can be concluded that the deep learning algorithm performs better than other superficial methods in many applications. As mentioned earlier, the deep learning algorithm is a new method yet has much potential for improvement and development. The method used in this research is a novel method in image reconstruction and there is a need to improve it. Developing methods can help improve the algorithm performance in future work   to increase the accuracy model and a more appropriate weighting of the used neural network. Additionally, with newer deep structures that increase in number daily, their efficiency in image reconstruction using EEG signals can be evaluated and checked.
Ethical considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
There were no ethical considerations involved in the research related to this article.
Authors’ contributions
The design of the research implementation stages and the writing of the article were done by Mahdi Arjmand. All authors performed the research literature and background. Saeed Stayeshi, Manuchehr Kelarestaghi, and Javad Hatami completed the design and actively participated in advising and supervising the implementation of the research and writing stages.
Funding
This research is not under the financial support of any institution or organization.
Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to all the dignitaries who helped us in conducting and consensus on the current research.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Cognitive rehabilitation is a treatment that emphasizes the role of executive functions as one of the valuable treatments for reducing cognitive and executive problems. Cognitive rehabilitation can be considered a kind of learning experience aimed at restoring brain functions that have problems. Computer-assisted rehabilitation focuses on the neuropsychological processes using computer-based exercises to train cognitive functions instead of paper-and-pencil methods. With the ever-increasing progress of computer technologies and the accuracy and ease of their use, various computer programs have been designed in cognitive fields, especially working memory, which is one of the components of executive actions. (22). Neurological skills are developed through experience, training and learning. These skills are automatically strengthened in most children and students, but children with special needs face problems with such skills, and they must be taught (24). Constantly, low-achieving gifted students are overlooked as a significant part of this group (23). At the same time, the research results of Pumaccahua et al. (2017) showed the effectiveness of computer-based cognitive rehabilitation strategies in improving children's cognitive abilities (13). As a result, in the last three or four decades, due to the pervasiveness of the consequences of cognitive disorders, many cognitive defects that computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation strategies can compensate for the defects and increase the quality of life of these children. This issue needs special attention paid.

The method of the present research was a descriptive quasi-experimental type. The statistical population included all students between the ages of ten and 12 in special gifted/talented boys' schools in Sanandaj city, Iran, in the academic year of 2018-2019. The number of 112 participants, of which 18 participants were available (nine participants in the experimental group and nine in in the control group), were selected as the sample size. The cognitive rehabilitation software was Captain Log (2014 version) and Kanzer's neuropsychological profile standard questionnaire (2004). Besides, experts confirmed the validity of these questionnaires. The reliability was calculated through Cronbach's alpha coefficient (0.81). Ultimately, for data analysis, descriptive (calculation of mean and standard deviation), inferential (Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA)), and Carbs assumptions (Regression and Levene’s tests) using SPSS-26 software were used.

Based on the F value, the results showed a significant difference between the groups (control and experiment) (P<0.05 and F=10.257). This means a significant difference (by controlling the pre-test factor) between the neurological scores of the experimental and control groups. Accordingly, the proposed research hypothesis was confirmed. Therefore, it can be concluded that computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation affected the neurocognitive profile of gifted/talented students in special schools in Sanandaj city, Iran. Similarly, the value of eta square showed that approximately 85% of the variance of the neurological profile was explained through computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation.

The findings of the present study concluded that computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation affects the neurocognitive profile of gifted students in special gifted schools in Sanandaj city, Iran. According to the research results, it can be mentioned that the brain, a flexible organ that can find its lost function by restoring itself. In the recovery process, other brain areas take over the damaged parts, and new neural pathways are formed. Therefore, computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation programs for the brain to recognize and shape these alternative ways minimize the adverse effects of brain injuries.
Ethical Considerations
Following the principles of ethics in research
In this research, the principles and rules of scientific ethics, such as trustworthiness, confidentiality, informed consent, and honesty, have been taken into consideration by the researchers. The authors tried to comply with ethical issues such as obtaining consent for research, checking the results during the research, and the executive responsibility of the research.
Authors’ contributions
Mohammad Fatehi: Was involved in the design of the study, data collection, data analysis, and article writing. Saeed Rezaei: Participated in the study's design, revision, and revision of the article. Parviz Sharifidaramadi: Participated in revising the article. All three authors read and approved the final version of the article.
Funding
This research was not under the financial support of any institution and was carried out at the personal expense of the researchers.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank and appreciate the cooperation of all participants in the present research.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Phonological processing skills refer to the perception, storage, retrieval, and manipulation of language sounds during the acquisition and comprehension of spoken and written codes. In other words, the ability to manipulate phonological representations (e.g., sounds) and the efficiency of retrieving vocabulary from long-term memory are conceptualized as phonological processing. Numerous studies have considered phonological processing defects a prominent feature in people with dyslexia. However, it is unclear how it affects people with dyscalculia. Phonological processing studies in people with dyslexia and dyscalculia have often yielded conflicting results. Some studies have found several differences in the phonological processing model of dyslexic individuals compared to dyscalculic individuals, and some have found no difference between the two groups. Hence, phonological processing seems to be one of the key elements of language that can be considered as a differential sign for separating people with dyslexia and dyscalculia or even the comorbidity of these two disorders. In this study, in order to evaluate the differentiation or cognitive comorbidity of students with dyslexia and dyscalculia, the variables of the phonological processing model, including phonological awareness, short-term phonological memory (PSTM), and rapid automatic naming in these groups, were compared.

The participants were 30-second elementary school students (15 girls and 15 boys) who, according to their referral or non-referral to Learning Disabilities Centers. Besides, based on the criteria of particular learning disability in DSM-V, their grades on the Learning Disability Assessment Scale-4 (LDES-4) and the socio-economic status of the family were divided into three groups: dyslexia (n=10), dyscalculia (n=10), and normal (n=10). The implementation process was such that after the initial selection of participants based on the opinion of the centers and educators in the first session, to determine the inclusion criteria for dyslexia and dyscalculia and more accurate identification, LDES-4 for each child by the educators of the centers completed. Some students who were identified by the learning disabilities centers as individuals with learning disabilities but did not agree with the LDES-4 results and the views of the instructors were excluded from the sample. Indeed, some of these late learners had behavioral problems or had both reading and math disorders and were therefore excluded from the study. In the second session, for measuring PSTM, two digit span of numerical breadth, number-letter sequence test, and to measure the speed index of two digit span, the test of speed of naming literacy and the speed of naming quantity of the Iranian version of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fifth Edition (WISC-VIR) were used. In addition, to assess phonological awareness of subtests of word differentiation, phonological analysis and word production of the third edition of the language development test were performed individually for each student. Using multivariate variance and follow-up analysis to compare groups, the researchers performed the profile analysis.

Statistical analysis revealed that the two groups of disorders in the two variables of phonological awareness, including phoneme production and word production, had a similar functional function and were distinct and significant from the normal group. However, in word differentiation, the response pattern was the same. However, there was no significant difference between the disorders and normal groups. These results are consistent with the findings of previous studies, which showed that poor phonological awareness is one of the significant problems in children with dyslexia. It is also consistent with research showing that phonological awareness tasks are a good predictor of learning arithmetic and math skills. No significant difference was found between the disorder group and the normal group in the variables of rapid automatic naming, including speed naming literacy and quantity. Previous studies have shown rapid naming defects in children with poor orthographic knowledge, mainly in non-alphabetic languages. Therefore, considering the Persian alphabet, it is concluded that this weakness is likely related to non-alphabetic languages. No significant difference was observed in the digit span variable of short-term phonological memory between the two disorder groups and between the disorder group and the normal group. Finally, the results indicated that in the number-letter sequence variable of short-term phonological memory, the performance of the two disorder groups was significantly different from each other and the normal group. In studies of memory impairment among dyscalculic individuals, studies have shown that these individuals have memory impairment in numerical, spatial, and verbal tasks. In contrast, some other studies have suggested that children with dyscalculia may experience different working memory impairments and that the weakness of people with dyslexics in this variable needs further investigation. The current study’s findings also demonstrated that children with dyslexia and dyscalculia do not have a phonological problem in short-term memory due to the type of test, which is consistent with the results of some studies that showed that this variable could not be clearly used to define two disorders.

The present study's results showed that the only component of phonological awareness of the phonological processing model might be as a comorbidity factor between the two groups with dyslexia and dyscalculia. Due to the vastness and complexity of cognitive profiles, there is an urgent need to use psychological and neuropsychological tools to measure more accurately and not be satisfied with a test. Also, the lack of accurate diagnostic tools in the field of academic performance of people with particular learning disabilities to use new diagnostic models such as the dual consonant-inconsistent model (DD/C) may challenge the separation of individuals in this study and, therefore, the need to develop such a tool. Accordingly, it is felt more than ever. Finally, the purpose of examining different phonological processing skills in relation to reading skills and mathematics is that such discoveries can help to understand the specific relationships of phonological processing related to reading and arithmetic among children. Second, if some phonological processing skills predict future reading and math functions, they can be useful as indicators for early screening for potential reading or math problems. Eventually, such connections indicate that teaching some of these phonological skills helps improve math and reading performance.

Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
The present study observes ethical principles, including obtaining written consent from parents in order for their children to participate in the research. In order to respect the principle of confidentiality, participants’ names were coded, and they were anonymous. In addition, adequate information on how to conduct research was provided to all participants and their freedom to leave the research process at any stage of the research.
Authors’ contributions
In writing this article, both authors participated almost equally in all activities. Hamidreza Hassanaabadi: Corresponding author and responsible for research design, preparation of screening and evaluation tools, data analysis, method, and results writing. Zahra Kakolvand: Responsible for the project implementation, collection, introduction, discussion, and conclusion writing.
Funding
The present study was carried out at the personal expense of the first author in the planning and execution of the data analysis
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank all the participating students and their parents, as well as the Learning Disabilities Centers and theSchools involved in this project.
Conflict of Interest
The authors of this article state that there is no conflict of interest in conducting this study.

Suicidal thoughts in adolescence can have irreparable consequences due to poor control over life, feelings of social loneliness, problems with parents and friends, and weakness in problem-solving and emotion management (1). Although Iran ranks 58th in the world with a suicide rate of 6 people per 100,000 people, it is necessary to address this psychological-social variable (2). In the field of etiology of suicide, although suffering from mental disorders (3), including depression, has been reported in 40-60% of people (4), recent studies emphasize the effect of biological factors, including neurotrophins (5). Among the neurotrophins, BDNF has attracted more study attention. BDNF maintains normal neurogenesis, synaptic function, neuroplasticity, and neuronal survival (6). So far, different and sometimes contradictory results have been proposed regarding the relationship between BDNF and depression (7, 8), and some believe that BDNF levels decrease significantly in suicidal patients (9). Culture and cultural context are also vital factor influencing suicide (11). In Iran, several qualitative studies have been conducted to identify the causes of suicidal behavior and thoughts (2, 12, 13). Azimi et al. showed that the causes of suicidal thoughts in teenage girls are: 1- Negative attitude toward the father (due to hard family life, lack of warmth between family members, and deprivation of freedom) 2- Perception of hopelessness (individual and social) 3- Unsafe school (unfavorable role of the teacher, school staff and education system) 4- Lack of religious excellence (lack of correct knowledge about God, defective attachment to God, external orientation towards religion) 5- Individual lack of maturity (problem in skills life, cognitive and emotion regulation) (13).
Among the psychological treatments, CBT has received the most research for treating depression and suicide among adolescents. However, its effectiveness seems to be influenced by the cultural and religious backgrounds of the clients (22). Similarly, at least half of the patients who undergo CB still experience psychosocial symptoms after the termination of treatment (15). Kennedy (2019) believes that the reason for the emergence and persistence of disease symptoms in people should be sought in biological components (16). In the current research, in line with the need to pay attention to biological and cultural factors in psychotherapy, a treatment protocol based on the psychological-cultural model has been designed and examined and compared with CBT treatment on depression and suicidal thoughts and BDNF. Besides, the modulating role of BDNF on the effectiveness of treatments on psychological variables was investigated.

This is a quasi-experimental research (pre-test. post-test, and control group). The study population consisted of 15-year-old female students in Isfahan who were selected by multi-stage cluster sampling of 45 people and randomly assigned to three groups cognitive-behavioral therapy, culture-based psychotherapy, and control group (without intervention). The CBT was implemented according to the valid protocols provided (27, 28). To design psychotherapy based on culture, according to the components of the cultural-psychological model (13), the interventions whose effectiveness was confirmed were selected. The techniques were arranged in the form of an integrated and coherent treatment package and presented to six experts. The agreement coefficient about the content of the treatment sessions was between 0.96 to 0.98 was obtained. Both intervention groups included 12 sessions of adolescent education and three sessions of parent education. Research variables were assessed through Beck Depression Inventory (1996), the Multi-attitude Suicide Tendency Scale (Orbach et al., 1981), and blood samples Data were analyzed using SPSS-24 software, multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA).

First, the statistical assumptions were checked through the Shapiro-Wilk test, and the results showed that the variables had a normal distribution. Lune's test also showed that the variances of the three groups were homogeneous. The assumption of homogeneity of the slope of the regression lines was also maintained. The results of the univariate covariance analysis test showed that after controlling the pre-test scores of the subjects, a difference was found between the mean post-test scores of the research groups in depression variables (F=6.230, P<0.05, η=0.247) and thoughts suicide (F=4.183, P<0.05, η=0.180) a significant difference was observed. However, no significant difference was found between the groups in BDNF (F=0.229, P<0.05, η=0.012). The statistical power indicated the relative adequacy of the sample size. Pairwise comparisons in the LSD test showed that both treatment groups decreased the scores of the participants in both depression and suicidal thoughts variables compared to the control group (P<0.05). However, in both mentioned variables, no significant difference was observed between culture-based psychotherapy and CBT. Furthermore, in this study, the modulating effect of BDNF was investigated. The assumptions of covariance analysis were valid. The assumption of sphericity was also checked and confirmed by using Mauchly's test of Sphericity W statistic (P<0.05). The results of covariance analysis with repeated measures indicated that BDNF could not moderate the effects of treatment on suicidal thoughts in any intervention groups (P<0.05).

The effectiveness of both treatment groups in reducing depression and suicidal thoughts was confirmed, and no difference was observed between the two groups in terms of effectiveness. Emphasis on self-knowledge, recognition of thoughts and feelings, cognitive errors, problem-solving, lifestyle, and communication skills leads to the effectiveness of both treatments on the level of depression of people. Indeed, four axes of depression have been considered in both treatments, including cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological changes (through lifestyle).
In the field of suicidal thoughts, in culture-based psychotherapy (according to the research of Azimi et al.), in addition to individual maturity and cognitive skills, the cultural context, including the socio-economic characteristics of the family, religious characteristics, identity background (with an emphasis on gender identity) as a girl and existing conditions (such as facilities and characteristics of schools and the possibility of employment in the future) were widely considered. Although the role-playing method is one of the CBT techniques, in culture-based psychotherapy, this technique was used in a more evolved derived from psychodrama therapy in most therapy sessions, and interpersonal relationships and regulation of emotions and behavioral skills. It was investigated practically and more deeply. Also, in culture-based psychotherapy, in addition to cognitive treatments, ultra-modern treatment techniques were used. Besides, based on the three axes of mind awareness and acceptance of emotions and thoughts, the need to persevere in reaching the goal (committed action) and cultivating a compassionate mind was emphasized. For example, one of the factors predicting vulnerability to suicide is the ability to resist negative emotions and coping strategies; this ability under the title of accepting and tolerating distress was one of the techniques in culture-based psychotherapy (derived from the DBT approach). Furthermore, considering that suicide is an injury arising from the conflict between the situations (socio-economic conditions). It desires that the techniques used in culture-based psychotherapy can lead to acceptance of the situation and realistic goal setting, reducing the lead to suicidal thoughts. Techniques used in culture-based psychotherapy, such as self-knowledge, distress tolerance, problem-solving, considering family relationships, purposefulness, self-efficacy, and cognitive flexibility, not only the totality of the individual's psyche but also family relationships and problem-solving methods according to environmental and cultural conditions, were considered.
In the present study, the significant effect of both interventions on BDNF was not confirmed, and the moderating effect of BDNF on psychological variables was not significant. The present results are inconsistent with some studies based on the moderating role of BDNF on the effectiveness of treatment (18, 19, 21) and consistent with some studies that show no effect of BDNF on the results of therapeutic interventions (29, 30). Response to pharmacological treatment occurs more quickly (33), whereas the response to psychotherapy may take months (32) and depends on factors such as the therapeutic relationship (35). BDNF levels tend to be stable over time (36); therefore, it is necessary to investigate the treatment results on this biological variable for a longer time. Seemingly, the contradictory findings in different studies are due to the influence of other variables (including biological and clinical variables) that have not yet been identified and taken into account. Future studies regarding the interaction of biological variables, psychological components, and treatments may provide additional insights.

Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
In compliance with ethical guidelines, the Ethics Committee of the University of Isfahan (IR.UI.REC.1396.048) has granted requisite ethical approvals. Written informed consent was obtained from the adolescent. They were informed about the confidentiality of the information and their voluntariness in participation in the study.

Authors' contributions
Akram Azimi participated in the research design, data collection, analysis, revision, and article writing. Fariba Yazdakhasi participated in the research article’s design, analysis, and writing. Mohammadreza Maracy and Amraleh Ebrahimi participated in the data analysis and revision of the article. All authors read and approved the final version.

Funding
No financial support has been received for this research.

Acknowledgments
The author appreciated Isfahan Education Organization, school principals, and students who cooperated with the researchers in this research. The researchers are also grateful to Sharife Joshanpoosh and Zahra Akhtarian, who collaborated with the researchers in the research’s statistical analysis and implementation stages of the.

Conflicts of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Immigrant adolescents are considered to be an extremely vulnerable group who are at increased risk for a range of psychological problems. On the other hand, the increase in the number of immigrants may potentially impose substantial pressure on mental health services in the country they are hosting. The current situation in Afghanistan makes it likely that Iran is facing a new wave of immigrants, warranting more knowledge about facilitating and promoting the immigrant adolescent’s positive adaptation. Cognitive flexibility refers to the mental ability that enables immigrant adolescents to adjust effectively to changing environmental demands and switch between cognitive strategies. Considering that few studies have been done in this regard with the variables studied in this study at present; thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the role of structural properties of self, consisting of self-complexity, self-concept clarity, and evaluative self-organization in the cognitive flexibility of Afghan immigrant adolescents in Iran.

The research method was descriptive correlational, analyzing the relationship between research variables. Three properties of structural self, consisting of self-complexity, self-concept clarity, and self-organization, were used as predictor variables, and cognitive flexibility as criterion variable entered into the study. The statistical population included all male and female Afghan immigrant adolescents in Iran aged 11 to 19. The sample of this study included 147 adolescents from four cities (Tehran, Qom, Semnan and, Mashhad) who were selected by convenience sampling. Inclusion criteria for participation were: having the ability to read and write and informed consent to participate in the research. Furthermore, the criteria for exclusion were: history of psychiatric disorder, severe cognitive disability, and sight/hearing problems affecting a person’s ability to communicate with the researcher. In order to observe the ethical principles of the research, all subjects received information about the research. They were assured that all information would remain confidential and only be used for research purposes. Written informed consent and verbal assent were obtained from immigrant adolescents and their parents. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the Kharazmi University Regional Research Ethics Committee (protocol number: IR.KHU.REC.1399.041). The Self-Descriptive Attribution-sorting Task, the Self-Concept Clarity Scale, and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) were used. In this study, Data analysis was performed by descriptive statistical methods (mean, standard deviation), conventional correlation, and multiple regressions to measure the research variables. In this study, a significance level of less than 0.05 was considered. Lastly, data were analyzed using SPSS-24 software.

Of 147 participating adolescents, 80 were girls, and 67 were boys. The mean and standard deviation of the age of male adolescents (14.13, 2.12) and female adolescents (14.93, 2.48) were obtained. Besides, the mean and standard deviation of the total age of adolescents was 14.56 and 2.35. Most participants in the study (76.2%) were second-generation immigrants who were born in Iran or who immigrated to Iran before age 6. The results showed the relationship between evaluative self-organization and total number of errors (TNE) (P<0.05, r=-0.25), evaluative self-organization with number of perseverative errors (NPE) (P<0.05, r=-0.22), evaluative self-organization with number of completed categories (NCC) (P<0.05, r=0.25), self-concept clarity with TNE (P<0.05, r=-0.22), self-concept clarity and NPE (P<0.05, r=-0.19), and self-concept clarity with NCC (P<0.05, r=0.20) were significant. The highest correlation coefficient was between evaluative self-organization with TNE and NCC (-0.25). According to the regression analysis results, among structural properties of self, self-concept clarity and evaluative self-organization could play a role in predicting cognitive flexibility. They predicted 10.8% of Completed Categories measure (P<0.01) and 11.7% Total Incorrect measure (P<0.001) of WCST. Among predictor variables, evaluative self-organization could predict a 4.9% Perseverative Errors measure (P<0.01) of WCST. The relationship between self-complexity and cognitive flexibility was not significant. The result revealed that evaluative self-organization (compartmentalization vs. integration) has the highest predictive power among the properties of the structural self.

In summary, the present study's results revealed that self-concept clarity and evaluative self-organization–two properties of structural self-have a significant relationship with cognitive flexibility. According to the present study’s results, paying attention to the structural properties of the self can contain valuable points to improve cognitive flexibility. These findings suggest that increasing the level of self-concept clarity and compartmentalization of self-organization may promote adjustment and better performance in Afghan immigrant adolescents when faced with the stressful challenges of immigration. Therefore, according to the importance of immigrants’ adaptation and the role of structural self in predicting cognitive flexibility, it is necessary to develop specific, codified, and accurate programs to create a suitable environment for immigrant adolescents to engage in more social roles, relations, and activities. In addition, promoting more apparent positive and negative self-knowledge could enhance skills to effectively switch between conflicting contextualized identities. This study has some limitations that future research should be taken into consideration. The first one regards the cross-sectional nature of the study. In future research, the use of longitudinal design will help.
Among the research limitations, this research could mention the limited population, the cross-sectional statistical sample of the research, contradictory remarks about the validity and reliability of the Linville H index, the impossibility of examining all the other variables playing a role in this process, and self-report measure for self-concept clarity. Therefore, the use of longitudinal studies, the search for a more valid and reliable index for self-complexity, the comparison with different groups such as native adolescents, the expansion of the statistical population and sample, and examine the mediation and moderation role of other potential variables such as acculturation strategies, emotion regulation, and personality types can more appropriately explain the relationship.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
In order to comply with the ethical principles of the research, all subjects received information about the research. They were assured that all information would remain confidential and only be used for research purposes. Written informed consent and verbal assent were obtained from immigrant adolescents and their parents. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the Kharazmi University Regional Research Ethics Committee (protocol number: IR.KHU.REC.1399.041).
Authors’ contributions
Morteza Delavarpouraghdam: Participated in the implementation of the research, data collection, initial writing of the article, and analysis and review of the results.  Alireza Moradi: The corresponding author and guide for the implementation stages of the research and revision of the article. Jafar Hasani: Participated in the research article’s analysis. All authors discussed the results and participated in editing the final version of the article.
Funding
This research was carried out with the financial support of the Iran National Science Foundation (INSF) with project number 96005280.
Acknowledgments
In the end, the authors are grateful to the Association for Protection of Refugees & Children HAMI in Tehran, Qom, Mashhad, and Semnan, and all those who have facilitated the implementation of the research.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declared no conflict of interest.