Insights on Social Behavior From Studying Williams Syndrome

Abstract

Central to the developmental psychopathology perspective is the claim that studying normal and atypical development are related. In this article, we argue that studying a naturally occurring genetic condition—Williams syndrome—provides insight into social behavior in typically developing children. Toward this end, we describe the social phenotype of Williams syndrome, then offer three insights regarding biological and environmental factors that account for variability in social behavior in individuals who are developing typically and individuals with the syndrome. In so doing, we illuminate genetic, neural, and environmental processes that likely influence typical social development as informed by Williams syndrome.

Anxiety characteristics in individuals with Williams syndrome

“…The behavioural phenotype includes impulsivity, short attention span, hypersociability, 'disruptive' behaviour and anxiety (Klein-Tasman & Lee, 2017;Ng-Cordell et al, 2018;Sampaio et al, 2018;Twite et al, 2019).…”

Williams syndrome: reduced orienting to other’s eyes in a hypersocial phenotype

“…Enhanced social attention in WS comes together with relative strengths in some areas of social perception (Jones et al, 2000 ; Sampaio et al, 2018 ; Vivanti, Hamner, & Lee, 2018 ). These strengths are particularly striking since WS is also associated with mild to moderate intellectual disability and particular challenges in areas such as visuospatial reasoning, memory and attention (Atkinson et al, 2007 ; Gregory et al, 2019 ; Miezah et al, 2020 ; Sampaio, Sousa, Férnandez, Henriques, & Gonçalves, 2008 ).…”

“…These strengths are particularly striking since WS is also associated with mild to moderate intellectual disability and particular challenges in areas such as visuospatial reasoning, memory and attention (Atkinson et al, 2007 ; Gregory et al, 2019 ; Miezah et al, 2020 ; Sampaio, Sousa, Férnandez, Henriques, & Gonçalves, 2008 ). WS has been a focus of interest for researchers from many disciplines, since this uneven cognitive profile indicates a dissociation between the social brain and mechanisms involved in domain-general learning (Barak & Feng, 2016 ; Sampaio et al, 2018 ). Genes commonly deleted in WS have been linked to sociability in the general human population (Barak & Feng, 2016 ; Crespi & Procyshyn, 2017 ; Zanella et al, 2019 ).…”