on williams syndrome

"Among the hallmark traits of individuals with Williams syndrome is an apparent lack of social inhibition. Dykens and Rosner (1999) found that 100% of those with Williams syndrome were kindred-spirited, 90% sought the company of others, 87% empathize with others' pain, 84% are caring, 83% are unselfish/forgiving, 75% never go unnoticed in a group, and 75% are happy when others do well. Infants with Williams syndrome make normal and frequent eye contact, and young children with Williams will often approach and hug strangers. Individuals affected by Williams syndrome typically have high empathy, and are rarely observed displaying aggression. In regards to empathy, they show relative strength in reading people's eyes to gauge intentions, emotions, and mental states. The level of friendliness observed in people with Williams is often inappropriate for the social setting, however, and teens and adults with Williams syndrome often experience social isolation, frustration, and loneliness despite their clear desire to connect to other people.

While these children often came off as happy due to their sociable nature, often there are internal drawbacks to the way they act. 76-86% of these children were reported as believing that they either had few friends or problems with their friends. This is possibly due to the fact that although they are very friendly to strangers and love meeting new people, they may have trouble interacting on a deeper level. 73-93% were reported as unreserved with strangers, 67% highly sensitive to rejection, 65% susceptible to teasing, and the statistic for exploitation and abuse was unavailable. This last one is a significant problem. People with Williams syndrome are frequently very trusting and want more than anything to make friends, leading them to submit to requests that under normal circumstances would be rejected. There are external problems as well. 91-96% demonstrate inattention, 75% impulsivity, 59-71% hyperactivity 46-74% tantrums, 32-60% disobedience, and 25-37% fighting and aggressive behavior.

In one experiment, a group of children with Williams syndrome showed no signs of racial bias, unlike children without the syndrome. They did show gender bias, however, suggesting separate mechanisms for these biases."