Gloria Yoshkova
Academic and research departments
Cognition, Genes and Developmental Variability Lab, School of Psychology.About
My research project
Motor Development in Williams SyndromeWilliams Syndrome (WS) is a rare genetic syndrome that occurs randomly. It is characterised by developmental delays, physical, cardiac and sensory problems, learning difficulties, and unique personality traits. Motor development is one of the areas where people with WS display delays and life-long difficulties. While motor skills are essential for almost everything we do, there is limited research on the specifics of motor development in infants and children with WS. Our research aims to determine the age range when children with WS achieve motor milestones such as being able to sit, crawl and walk. Furthermore, we will employ novel techniques to study the specifics of motor skills in WS by analysing the quality of movement in the first unsupported gait of children with and without WS. These findings will aid the development of tools and materials to assist parents and practitioners in monitoring children’s development. The findings of this research will inform early interventions and will have relevance to other neurodevelopmental conditions that present with motor impairments.
Supervisors
Williams Syndrome (WS) is a rare genetic syndrome that occurs randomly. It is characterised by developmental delays, physical, cardiac and sensory problems, learning difficulties, and unique personality traits. Motor development is one of the areas where people with WS display delays and life-long difficulties. While motor skills are essential for almost everything we do, there is limited research on the specifics of motor development in infants and children with WS. Our research aims to determine the age range when children with WS achieve motor milestones such as being able to sit, crawl and walk. Furthermore, we will employ novel techniques to study the specifics of motor skills in WS by analysing the quality of movement in the first unsupported gait of children with and without WS. These findings will aid the development of tools and materials to assist parents and practitioners in monitoring children’s development. The findings of this research will inform early interventions and will have relevance to other neurodevelopmental conditions that present with motor impairments.
Publications
Background: Motor difficulties are a hallmark feature of Williams Syndrome (WS), yet limited research exists on the quality of early walking in this population. Purpose: This study examined the motor characteristics of first unsupported walking in toddlers with WS compared to neurotypical (NT) peers. Research design: The study used an observational between-subjects design, analysing data from a single time point. Study Sample: Twenty children with WS (age in days at first walking onset: M = 791.75 days, SD = 147.51) were compared to 24 NT children (M = 395.67 days, SD = 72.17). Data analysis: Home videos from children with WS and NT children were analysed using two observational frameworks: the Walking Observation Scale (WOS; Esposito & Venuti, 2008) to evaluate gait quality, and the Positional Pattern for Symmetry during Walking (PPSW; Esposito et al., 2011) to assess gait symmetry. Results: Age of independent walking onset differed significantly between groups. There were no significant differences in overall gait quality, but a significant interaction demonstrated different profiles of gait quality. Axis-specific analyses revealed a significant interaction with group for foot atypicality only. This was due to the WS children showing marginally more out-toeing than the NT group. Analysis of gait symmetry identified significantly greater symmetry during walking in the WS group compared to NT peers. However, this effect did not remain significant when age was partialled out. Conclusion: Walking in WS is delayed, but does not differ substantially in quality. Instead, it is marked by subtle atypical motor strategies. These results emphasise the importance of fine-grained analysis of early motor development. Motor atypicalities may be antecedents of later difficulties and thus can inform targeted interventions and shed light on developmental mechanisms.