Studying Interactions, Reactions, and Perceptions: Can Genetic Disorders Serve as Behavioral Proxies?

Abstract

Different genetic disorders predispose individuals to display specific, etiology-related profiles, personalities, and maladaptive behaviors. Using groups with genetic etiologies as stand-ins or proxies for a specific behavior or set of behaviors, one can then examine how others in the child's environment react and whether such reactions are limited to a particular disorder or occur generally to all individuals showing that behavior. Just as twins, adopted, and institutionalized children have all been used as natural experiments to tell us about typical development, so too can groups with specific genetic syndromes help us to understand the nature and mechanisms of the reactions and behaviors of others.

The Sound of Feelings: Electrophysiological Responses to Emotional Speech in Alexithymia

“…With a prevalence rate of up to 10 percent [1], alexithymia has been recognized as a risk factor for a variety of psychiatric and medical disorders, including somatization, anxiety, depression, hypertension, and chronic pain [2]. In addition, alexithymia exhibits high comorbidity with disorders of the Autism spectrum [3]–[6].…”

Joint Attention and Early Social Developmental Cascades in Neurogenetic Disorders

“…According to Dykens (1995), a behavioral phenotype is conceptualized as “the heightened probability or likelihood that people with a given syndrome will exhibit certain behavioral or developmental sequelae relative to those without the syndrome” (p. 523). Therefore, within a specific neurogenetic disorder, there are behaviors that are more probable, but these behaviors may not emerge for all individuals with that disorder (Dykens, 1995; Hodapp & Desjardin, 2002; Hodapp, 2004). In addition, while certain behaviors may be associated with a specific syndrome, they may not be completely unique to that syndrome (e.g., sociability and friendliness in Down syndrome and Williams syndrome; Dilts, Morris, & Leonard, 1990).…”

The Sibling Experience: Growing Up with a Child Who Has Pervasive Developmental Disorder or Mental Retardation

“…Hodapp 42 recently proposed research that seeks to elucidate the reactions of parents to specific syndromic characteristics of the affected children in cases of Williams syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, and Down's syndrome. For example, mothers of children with Down's syndrome may be more attuned to their children's sociable personalities, their relatively weak language abilities, or their relatively strong visual short-term memory.…”