Cognitive

Developmental disorders are often studied as eitherindependent research groups or as clinical casepresentations; these approaches are rarely combined.This book directly compares cognitive and socialfunctioning in three developmental disorders:Williams syndrome (WS), Down syndrome (DS) andautism (AS), from both a research and a clinicalperspective. This unique approach provides newinsights into cognitive functioning within WS, DSand AS, including: attention; memory; learning andprocessing styles; verbal abilities; spatial skillsand reasoning. New insights are also provided intohow WS, DS and AS view the world from a socialperspective, including: their ability to reademotions; their motivational drive toward socialinteraction; and their Theory of Mind , or theirability to understand other people s behavioursbased on underlying desires, emotions, and thoughts.Findings also highlight within-syndrome variabilityin cognitive and social functions in WS,which was previously thought to have a homogenouscognitive profile. The book is a valuable resourcefor researchers, as well as health and educationprofessionals.

Auteur
Melanie A. Porter (B. Psych. Hons., M. Clin. Neuro., Ph.D.): Isa practicing Developmental Clinical Neuropsychologist, and aLecturer in Clinical Neuropsychology at Macquarie University,Sydney, Australia. She is also a member of the AustralianCollege of Clinical Neuropsychologists.