Relations between Emotion
Regulation and Adaptive
Functioning in Children and
Adolescents with Williams
Syndrome
-
1
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, United States
Background & Purpose: Studies of adaptive functioning in individuals with Williams syndrome have generally found delays across areas, with particular weaknesses noted in daily living skills and motor skills. Although intellectual functioning is related to adaptive behavior, the less than perfect correlation between these constructs, as well as the variability in adaptive functioning warrants investigation of other contributing factors. In particular, few studies have examined relations between adaptive functioning and other behavior in Williams syndrome, and no study to date has evaluated the role of a broad emotional functioning construct, such as emotion regulation, in adaptive functioning. The purpose of the current study is to examine the relation between emotion regulation and adaptive abilities in children and adolescents with Williams syndrome.
Method: Participants included 37 children (17 males, 20 females) with Williams syndrome, ages 8 to 15. Intellectual abilities were measured using the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, 2nd Edition (KBIT-II; Kaufman & Kaufman, 2004). Emotion regulation was assessed with two parent-report measures, the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functions (BRIEF; Gioia, Isquith, Guy, & Kenworthy, 2000) and the Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC; Shields & Cicchetti, 1997). Parents were also interviewed using the Scales of Independent Behavior – Revised (SIB-R; Bruininks, Woodcock, Weatherman, & Hill, 1996), a measure of adaptive abilities. Given the high correlation between the BRIEF Emotional Control and ERC Lability/Negativity scales (r = .71, p < .001), an Emotion Regulation (ER) Composite was created by combining these scales.
Results: Emotion regulation difficulties were observed in the majority (73%) of participants based on ratings on the BRIEF EC scale, which is norm-referenced (M=66.62, SD = 11.78). Negative correlations were found between the ER Composite and all five SIB-R domain standard scores, including Broad Independence (r = -.59, p < .001), Motor Skills (r = -.52, p < .01), Social/Communication Skills (r = -.43, p < .01), Personal Living Skills (r = -.64, p < .001), and Community Living Skills (r = -.49, p < .01). These findings indicated that higher levels of emotion regulation difficulties were associated with poorer adaptive functioning. As intellectual abilities and adaptive behavior were correlated, partial correlations were then conducted, to control for the role of intellectual functioning. Significant negative correlations remained between the ER Composite and Broad Independence (r = -.51, p = .005), Motor Skills (r = -.44, p = .007), and Personal Living Skills (r = -.60, p < .001), once intellectual functioning was taken into account. Finally, partial correlations, controlling for intellectual functioning, were conducted between the ER Composite and specific scale raw scores of the SIB-R. The ER composite was significantly related to Gross Motor Skills (r = -.44, p = .007), Toileting (r = -.43, p = .008), Personal Self-Care (r = -.45, p = .005), and Domestic Skills (r = -.54, p = .001).
Discussion: Findings revealed that greater emotion regulation difficulties were related to poorer adaptive functioning in some domains even when intellectual abilities were taken into account. Research about the potential role of emotion regulation in acquisition of daily living skills is warranted. Further implications of these findings for the understanding of the behavioral phenotype in Williams Syndrome will be discussed.
Conference:
12th International Professional Conference on Williams Syndrome, Garden Grove,CA, United States, 13 Jul - 14 Jul, 2008.
Presentation Type:
Poster Presentation
Topic:
Multidisciplinary Poster Session
Citation:
Phillips
KD and
Tasman
BK
(2009). Relations between Emotion
Regulation and Adaptive
Functioning in Children and
Adolescents with Williams
Syndrome.
Conference Abstract:
12th International Professional Conference on Williams Syndrome.
doi: 10.3389/conf.neuro.09.2009.07.054
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Received:
04 May 2009;
Published Online:
04 May 2009.
*
Correspondence:
K. D Phillips, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kdp@uwm.edu