Social cognition training in children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome : single-case studies ; Programme d’entraînement de la cognition sociale chez l’enfant porteur d’une microdélétion 22q11.2 : étude de cas uniques

Rare neurodevelopmental disorders often present social cognitive deficits that may underlie difficulties in social interactions and increase the risk of psychosis or autism spectrum disorders. Notably, these syndromes increase the difficulties in social interactions and present a high risk to develop psychosis or autism spectrum disorders. The doctoral research, presented here, aim to develop and assess the efficacy of a new individualized social cognitive training program using computerized material, theater activities and online eye- tracking feedback. This program (RC-KID program) is designed for children aged between 5 to 11 years old. This doctoral thesis includes two publications. In the first article, we provide an overview of social cognitive abilities in rare neurodevelopmental disorders associated with psychiatric symptoms and shed some light on the specific mechanisms that may underlie these skills in each clinical presentation. Then we present the RC-KID program. In the second article, we present three single-case studies, using a multiple baseline and ABA design with children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Poor social skills and functioning are a major characteristic of children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome and are partly linked with social cognitive impairments. Patients have difficulties in recognizing facial emotions and this impairment may be related to an atypical observation of faces. After the treatment phase, we found a significant improvement of children’s skills in affect recognition and emotion understanding. The RC-KID program is a new promising social cognitive training for reducing social cognitive impairment in children with 22q11.2DS, and could also be adapted to other neurodevelopmental disorders presenting the same deficits ; Les troubles du neuro-développement correspondent à une perturbation du développement des compétences cognitives attendues lors du développement psychomoteur et affectif de l’enfant. Ces troubles sont souvent associés à un déficit de la cognition sociale ...