This was the first of a series of papers by Kennard that led to what became known as the Kennard Principle, which posits a negative linear relationship between age of a brain lesion and the recovery outcome. The earlier in life a brain lesion occurs, the more likely it is for some compensation mechanism to reverse at least some of the lesion's effects. Kennard did not originate the principle associated with her name. See Maureen Dennis, "Margaret Kennard (1899-1975): Not a 'Principle' of brain plasticity but a founding mother of developmental neuropsychology," Cortex, 46, 2010, 1043-1059.