COMPARISON OF ETIOLOGY-SPECIFIC COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING PROFILES FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH FRAGILE X AND INDIVIDUALS WITH DOWN SYNDROME

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the cognitive functioning profiles of individuals with Fragile X as compared to those of individuals with Down syndrome. The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (Kaufman & Kaufman, 1983) was administered to 32 individuals with Fragile X and 8 children with Down syndrome. Results revealed that individuals with Fragile X scored significantly lower on Sequential Processing than on Simultaneous Processing. This difference was not evident for the Down syndrome group. There were significant differences within the three groups on individual subtest scores for Sequential Processing and Achievement. Within the domain of Simultaneous Processing, significant differences were found between individual subtest scores for the Fragile X groups but not for the Down syndrome group. Study findings provide support for etiology-specific cognitive functioning profiles for individuals with Fragile X.

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