Psychosocial Functioning and Social Cognitive Processing in Girls with Turner Syndrome

Objective: Turner syndrome (TS) is a common genetic disorder caused by partial or complete absence of the second X chromosome in females and is associated with a characteristic neurocognitive profile traditionally described by discrepancy between verbal and performance IQ. Difficulties in social functioning have also been increasingly identified in this population. The purpose of this study was to examine elements of social competence and cognition in a pre-estrogen population of girls with TS. Methods: The authors administered psychosocial and neurocognitive measures to examine metrics of social function and intelligence in a group of young girls with TS, pre-estrogen treatment (n = 42) and control peers (n = 32), aged between 3 and 12 years. Results: Girls with TS demonstrated significantly decreased social competency on all dimensions of the Social Responsiveness Scale, with the exception of the Social Motivation subscale, where ratings were comparable with typically developing peers. Performance on social cognitive tasks was also impaired on NEPSY Memory for Faces and Theory of Mind tasks. Differences were further observed on Behavioral Assessment Scales for Children subscales of Hyperactivity, Atypicality, Attention, Social Skills, Activities of Daily Living, and Functional Communication. Group differences in social cognition or behavior remained significant after adjusting for verbal IQ. Conclusion: This study supports the hypothesis that young girls with TS who have not yet received estrogen treatment demonstrate significantly impaired social cognition. Improved understanding of differences in social competence and cognition can increase awareness and inform clinical approaches to identifying and treating social difficulties in individuals with TS.