Preschoolers with Down syndrome do not yet show the learning and memory impairments seen in adults with Down syndrome
- Publication Type:
- Journal Article
- Citation:
- Developmental Science, 2015, 18 (3), pp. 404 - 419
- Issue Date:
- 2015-01-01
Closed Access
| Filename | Description | Size | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | pre-print proof.pdf | Published Version | 322.02 kB |
Copyright Clearance Process
- Recently Added
- In Progress
- Closed Access
This item is closed access and not available.
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) exhibit a behavioral phenotype of specific strengths and weaknesses, in addition to a generalized cognitive delay. In particular, adults with DS exhibit specific deficits in learning and memory processes that depend on the hippocampus, and there is some suggestion of impairments on executive function tasks that depend on the prefrontal cortex. While these functions have been investigated in adults with DS, it is largely unclear how these processes develop in young children with DS. Here we tested preschoolers with DS and typically developing children, age-matched on either receptive language or non-verbal scores as a proxy for mental age (MA), on a battery of eye-tracking and behavioral measures that have been shown to depend on the hippocampus or the prefrontal cortex. Preschoolers with DS performed equivalently to MA-matched controls, suggesting that the disability-specific memory deficits documented in adults with DS, in addition to a cognitive delay, are not yet evident in preschoolers with DS, and likely emerge progressively with age. Our results reinforce the idea that early childhood may be a critical time frame for targeted early intervention. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https //www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6GUA6my22Q&list=UU3FIcom6UpITHZOIEa8Onnw
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: