Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome
Abstract Background People with Williams syndrome (WS) face challenges in various areas of cognitive processing, including attention. Previous studies suggest that these challenges are particularly pronounced when disengagement of attention from a previously attended stimulus is required, as compare...
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2025-08-01
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| Series: | Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-025-09639-z |
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| author | Astrid Hallman Charlotte Willfors Christine Fawcett Matilda A. Frick Ann Nordgren Johan Lundin Kleberg |
| author_facet | Astrid Hallman Charlotte Willfors Christine Fawcett Matilda A. Frick Ann Nordgren Johan Lundin Kleberg |
| author_sort | Astrid Hallman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background People with Williams syndrome (WS) face challenges in various areas of cognitive processing, including attention. Previous studies suggest that these challenges are particularly pronounced when disengagement of attention from a previously attended stimulus is required, as compared to shifting attention without the need to disengage. Difficulties with attention could in turn be implicated in several of the behavioral characteristics of WS. Here, disengagement and shifting of visual attention, together with pupil dilation, were independently assessed in one of the largest eye-tracking studies of WS to date. Methods We investigated shifting, disengagement, and the effects of auditory alerting cues on pupil dilation in WS individuals (n = 45, age range = 9–58 years), non-WS individuals with intellectual disability (ID) (n = 36, age range = 6–59 years), and typically developed (TD) infants (n = 32, age range = 6–7 months), children and adults (n = 31, age range = 9–60 years), using a modified gap-overlap task. Data were analyzed using linear mixed-effect models (LMMs). Results Individuals with WS were less likely to shift their attention to upcoming targets than TD individuals (all ages), but more likely than the ID group to do so. When they did shift attention, participants with WS and ID were slower to initiate a gaze shift than TD participants regardless of whether disengagement was needed. In the WS group, failure to shift attention was strongly predicted by higher arousal (pupil dilation), which was induced by auditory alerting cues. Conclusions Contrasting with previous theories of attention in WS, we found no evidence for a specific challenge in disengaging attention. Instead, our results point to a more general challenge in shifting attention. Reduced attention shifting in WS may be partly explained by atypical arousal regulation. These results contribute to our understanding of the WS phenotype. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-93618f10baf4439faf0690c0b4e5b122 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1866-1955 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders |
| spelling | doaj-art-93618f10baf4439faf0690c0b4e5b1222025-08-20T03:45:45ZengBMCJournal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders1866-19552025-08-0117111510.1186/s11689-025-09639-zChallenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndromeAstrid Hallman0Charlotte Willfors1Christine Fawcett2Matilda A. Frick3Ann Nordgren4Johan Lundin Kleberg5Department of Psychology, Stockholm UniversityDepartment of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska InstituteDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm UniversityDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm UniversityDepartment of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska InstituteDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm UniversityAbstract Background People with Williams syndrome (WS) face challenges in various areas of cognitive processing, including attention. Previous studies suggest that these challenges are particularly pronounced when disengagement of attention from a previously attended stimulus is required, as compared to shifting attention without the need to disengage. Difficulties with attention could in turn be implicated in several of the behavioral characteristics of WS. Here, disengagement and shifting of visual attention, together with pupil dilation, were independently assessed in one of the largest eye-tracking studies of WS to date. Methods We investigated shifting, disengagement, and the effects of auditory alerting cues on pupil dilation in WS individuals (n = 45, age range = 9–58 years), non-WS individuals with intellectual disability (ID) (n = 36, age range = 6–59 years), and typically developed (TD) infants (n = 32, age range = 6–7 months), children and adults (n = 31, age range = 9–60 years), using a modified gap-overlap task. Data were analyzed using linear mixed-effect models (LMMs). Results Individuals with WS were less likely to shift their attention to upcoming targets than TD individuals (all ages), but more likely than the ID group to do so. When they did shift attention, participants with WS and ID were slower to initiate a gaze shift than TD participants regardless of whether disengagement was needed. In the WS group, failure to shift attention was strongly predicted by higher arousal (pupil dilation), which was induced by auditory alerting cues. Conclusions Contrasting with previous theories of attention in WS, we found no evidence for a specific challenge in disengaging attention. Instead, our results point to a more general challenge in shifting attention. Reduced attention shifting in WS may be partly explained by atypical arousal regulation. These results contribute to our understanding of the WS phenotype.https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-025-09639-zWilliams syndromeOrienting attentionPupil dilationEye trackingVisual disengagementShifting attention |
| spellingShingle | Astrid Hallman Charlotte Willfors Christine Fawcett Matilda A. Frick Ann Nordgren Johan Lundin Kleberg Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders Williams syndrome Orienting attention Pupil dilation Eye tracking Visual disengagement Shifting attention |
| title | Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome |
| title_full | Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome |
| title_fullStr | Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome |
| title_full_unstemmed | Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome |
| title_short | Challenges with shifting, regardless of disengagement: attention mechanisms and eye movements in Williams syndrome |
| title_sort | challenges with shifting regardless of disengagement attention mechanisms and eye movements in williams syndrome |
| topic | Williams syndrome Orienting attention Pupil dilation Eye tracking Visual disengagement Shifting attention |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s11689-025-09639-z |
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