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Lookup NU author(s): Katie Little, Dr Debbie Riby, Dr Emily Janes, Fiona Clark, Ruth Fleck, Emerita Professor Jacqueline Rodgers
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The developmental disorder of Williams syndrome (WS) is associated with an overfriendly personality type, including an increased tendency to approach strangers. This atypical social approach behaviour (SAB) has been linked to two potential theories: the amygdala hypothesis and the frontal lobe hypothesis. The current study aimed to investigate heterogeneity of SAB in WS by exploring whether subgroups of SAB profiles could be identified using cluster analytic techniques. Twenty-five children with WS aged 6–15 years completed three behavioural tasks tapping (i) social approach behaviour, (ii) emotion recognition ability and (iii) response inhibition. Cluster analyses revealed preliminary evidence of WS subgroups based on SAB profiles and indicated that response inhibition ability was the key differentiating variable between SAB cluster profiles. The findings provide tentative support for the frontal lobe hypothesis of SAB in WS and highlight the importance of investigating SAB at a heterogeneous level.
Author(s): Little K, Riby D, Janes E, Clark F, Fleck R, Rodgers J
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Research in Developmental Disabilities
Year: 2013
Volume: 34
Issue: 3
Pages: 959-967
Print publication date: 03/01/2013
Online publication date: 03/01/2013
ISSN (print): 0891-4222
ISSN (electronic): 1873-3379
Publisher: Pergamon
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2012.11.020
DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2012.11.020
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