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Problem behaviour and psychosocial functioning in young children with Williams syndrome: parent and teacher
1Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
Insights
Problem behaviors in young children with Williams syndrome (WS) are common, especially attention issues and emotional reactivity. Teachers reported more externalizing behaviors than parents.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatric Neurology
- Behavioral Genetics
Background:
- Limited research exists on problem behaviors in young children with Williams syndrome (WS).
- Few studies consider the perspectives of multiple informants, such as parents and teachers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate problem behaviors in young children with WS.
- To compare parent and teacher reports on behavioral difficulties.
Main Methods:
- Achenbach's Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) preschool forms were used.
- Data were collected from 35 children with WS aged 2–6 years.
- Parent and teacher reports were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Attention problems, pervasive developmental issues, and emotion reactivity were most prominent.
- Teachers reported higher rates of externalizing behaviors (aggression, ADHD, ODD) than parents.
- Few correlations were found with intellectual functioning, age, or gender.
Conclusions:
- Early-onset behavioral challenges in WS share similarities with older children, like attention and social problems.
- Understanding these behaviors is crucial for the behavioral phenotype of WS.
- Discrepancies in parent-teacher reporting highlight the need for multi-informant assessments.
Background:
There is sparse literature about problem behaviour in young children with Williams syndrome (WS) and little consideration of the perspectives of multiple respondents.
Methods:
Problem behaviour of 35 children with WS ages 2 to 6 was examined based on both parent and teacher report using the Achenbach preschool forms.
Results:
The most prominent areas of difficulty based on both parent and teacher report were attention problems, pervasive developmental problems and emotion reactivity difficulties. Some rater differences were observed; most notably, teachers reported more externalising behaviour problems including more aggressive behaviour, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity problems and Oppositional Defiant problems than did parents. Few relations to intellectual functioning, age or gender were observed.
Discussion:
Some aspects of problem behaviour evident in older children (e.g. attention problems, social problems) are also apparent for young children with WS, while other areas are less prominent (e.g. anxiety). The implications of the findings for understanding the behavioural phenotype associated with WS are discussed.
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