Gc. Woodyatt et Ae. Ozanne, A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY OF COGNITIVE SKILLS AND COMMUNICATION BEHAVIORS IN CHILDREN WITH RETT-SYNDROME, JIDR. Journal of intellectual disability research, 37, 1993, pp. 419-435
Changes in the cognitive, communicative and interactive development of
a group of six girls with Rett syndrome (three younger and three olde
r) were documented over a 3-year period. All six maintained a profound
level of intellectual performance and a preintentional level of commu
nication in which caregivers assigned meaning to the girls' limited be
haviours. However, marked individual variation was noted in both cogni
tive and social interaction skills. The study supported the notion of
an increased perception of social interactiveness by the caregivers ov
er time. The development of means-end behaviour, in particular, seems
closely linked with the measured increase in behaviours inferred as co
mmunicative. However, the results also show that factors such as cogni
tive level, physical status and educational intervention may be relate
d to this perception.