Farran, EK; Blades, M; Boucher, J; Tranter, LJ; (2010) How do individuals with Williams syndrome learn a route in a real-world environment? Developmental Science , 13 (3) pp. 454-468. 10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00894.x.

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Abstract

Individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) show a specific deficit in visuo-spatial abilities. This finding, however, derives mainly from performance on small-scale laboratory-based tasks. This study investigated large-scale route learning in individuals with WS and two matched control groups (moderate learning difficulty group [MLD], typically developing group [TD]). In a non-labelling and a labelling (verbal information provided along the route) condition, participants were guided along one of two unfamiliar 1-km routes with 20 junctions, and then retraced the route themselves (two trials). The WS participants performed less well than the other groups, but given verbal information and repeated experience they learnt nearly all of the turns along the route. The extent of improvement in route knowledge (correct turns) in WS was comparable to that of the control groups. Relational knowledge (correctly identifying spatial relationships between landmarks), compared with the TD group, remained poor for both the WS and the MLD group. Assessment of the relationship between performance on the large-scale route-learning task and that on three small-scale tasks (maze learning, perspective taking, map use) showed no relationship for the TD controls, and only a few non-specific associations in the MLD and WS groups.

Type:	Article
Title:	How do individuals with Williams syndrome learn a route in a real-world environment?
Location:	England
Open access status:	An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI:	10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00894.x
Publisher version:	http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2009.00894.x
Language:	English
Additional information:	This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification:	UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education
URI:	https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1505897

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• How do individuals with Williams syndrome learn a route in a real-world environment? (deposited 07 Apr 2016 16:15)
  • How do individuals with Williams syndrome learn a route in a real-world environment? (deposited 01 Jun 2017 16:51) [Currently Displayed]

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