Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience at Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Anna Järvinen-Pasley, Ph.D.
Research Associate (2005-)

Ph.D. 2005, Psychology, Goldsmiths College, University of London, London, UK

My main research interests include the cognitive and neural causes of developmental disorders, particularly Williams syndrome (WS) and autism. Autism is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder that is diagnosed on the basis of difficulties in social interaction, atypical language, stereotyped interests, and repetitive behaviors. My Ph.D. studies, carried out at Goldsmiths College, University of London, under the supervision of Dr. Pamela Heaton, examined speech processing in children with autism, with specific focus on identifying atypical patterns of auditory processing. Our studies showed superior perceptual processing of speech in individuals with autism relative to age- and intelligence-matched controls. The results also suggested that semantic level processing may not be the primary, or “default”, speech-processing mode. The overly focused auditory-perceptual processing may therefore contribute to the undercutting of higher-level language skills.

Here at the Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience, we focus on defining the social phenotype of individuals with WS. I am conducting both psychophysiological and eye tracking studies to examine the role of autonomic nervous system function in social-behavioral tendencies in WS, as well as investigating eye scanning paths with respect to social versus non-social stimuli. I am also interested in the relationship between social-perceptual abilities and expressive social behaviors in individuals with WS. Establishing similarities and differences between the cognitive-behavioral profiles of individuals with WS and those with autism, and contrasting the underlying neurobiological and genetic causes of these disorders, is another area of interest, which ties in closely with my earlier Ph.D. studies.

Publications

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Bellugi, U., Reilly, J., Mills, D.L., Galaburda, A., Reiss, A.L., & Korenberg, J.R. (2008, in press). Defining the social phenotype in Williams syndrome: A model for linking gene, brain, and cognition. Development and Psychopathology.

Bellugi, U., Järvinen-Pasley, A., Doyle, T.F., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., & Korenberg, J.R. (2007). Affect, social behavior and the brain in Williams syndrome. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16(2), 99-104.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Pasley, J., & Heaton, P. (2007, in press). Is the linguistic content of speech less salient than its perceptual features in autism? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Wallace, G.L., Ramus, F., Happé, F.G.E., & Heaton, P. (2007, in press). Enhanced perceptual processing of speech in autism. Developmental Science.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., & Heaton, P. (2006, in press). Evidence for reduced domain-specificity in auditory processing in autism. Developmental Science.

Korenberg, J.R., Dai, L., Bellugi, U., Järvinen-Pasley, A., Mills, D., Galaburda, A., Reiss, A., & Pober, B.R. (2007, in press). Deletion of 7q11.23 Genes and Williams Syndrome. In C.J. Epstein, R.P. Erickson, & A. Wynshaw-Boris (Eds.), Inborn Errors of Development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Publications pending

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Peppé, S., King-Smith, G., & Heaton, P. (2007). Relationship between form and function level receptive prosodic abilities in autism. Under review for Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. Affiliative behavior in Williams syndrome: Dissociation between social-perceptual abilities and social-behavioral tendencies? Manuscript in preparation.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Tsuchiya, N., Leonard, M.K., Yam, A., Hill, K.J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. Autonomic Correlates of Processing Upright and Inverted Affective Faces in Williams Syndrome. Manuscript in preparation.

Conference presentations

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Tsuchiya, N., Leonard, M.K., Yam, A., Hill, K.J., Galaburda, A., Mills, D., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. (2007, November). Genes, Neural Systems, and Social Behavior: Autonomic Correlates of Processing Upright and Inverted Affective Faces in Williams Syndrome. 2007 Society for Neuroscience Annual Conference, San Diego, CA.

Järvinen-Pasley, A., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. (2006, April). Investigating the Relative Strengths of Social-Perceptual Abilities and Expressive Social Behaviors in Williams Syndrome [Abstract & Poster]. 2006 Annual Cognitive Neuroscience Society Meeting, San Francisco, CA.

Järvinen, A., & Heaton, P. (2004, June). Sensitivity to Pitch Contour in Speech in Children with Autism [Poster]. UCL’s Centre for Human Communication Inaugural Conference on the Architecture of the Language Faculty, London, UK.

Järvinen, A., & Heaton, P. (2004, September). Exploring the Default Mechanism in Autism with Respect to Speech: Is Perceptual Information More Salient than Semantics? [Oral Presentation]. The BPS Developmental Psychology Conference, Leeds, UK.





	Brain, Behavior, & Cognition Gene, Brain, & Cognition Social Cognition, Brain & Genes Cognitive Development Language Modality & Brain Selected Lab Publications Families & Participants Williams Syndrome Aphasia Developmental Delays Participate in our research		Anna Järvinen-Pasley, Ph.D. Research Associate (2005-) pasley@salk.edu Ph.D. 2005, Psychology, Goldsmiths College, University of London, London, UK My main research interests include the cognitive and neural causes of developmental disorders, particularly Williams syndrome (WS) and autism. Autism is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder that is diagnosed on the basis of difficulties in social interaction, atypical language, stereotyped interests, and repetitive behaviors. My Ph.D. studies, carried out at Goldsmiths College, University of London, under the supervision of Dr. Pamela Heaton, examined speech processing in children with autism, with specific focus on identifying atypical patterns of auditory processing. Our studies showed superior perceptual processing of speech in individuals with autism relative to age- and intelligence-matched controls. The results also suggested that semantic level processing may not be the primary, or “default”, speech-processing mode. The overly focused auditory-perceptual processing may therefore contribute to the undercutting of higher-level language skills. Here at the Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience, we focus on defining the social phenotype of individuals with WS. I am conducting both psychophysiological and eye tracking studies to examine the role of autonomic nervous system function in social-behavioral tendencies in WS, as well as investigating eye scanning paths with respect to social versus non-social stimuli. I am also interested in the relationship between social-perceptual abilities and expressive social behaviors in individuals with WS. Establishing similarities and differences between the cognitive-behavioral profiles of individuals with WS and those with autism, and contrasting the underlying neurobiological and genetic causes of these disorders, is another area of interest, which ties in closely with my earlier Ph.D. studies. Publications Järvinen-Pasley, A., Bellugi, U., Reilly, J., Mills, D.L., Galaburda, A., Reiss, A.L., & Korenberg, J.R. (2008, in press). Defining the social phenotype in Williams syndrome: A model for linking gene, brain, and cognition. Development and Psychopathology. Bellugi, U., Järvinen-Pasley, A., Doyle, T.F., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., & Korenberg, J.R. (2007). Affect, social behavior and the brain in Williams syndrome. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16(2), 99-104. Järvinen-Pasley, A., Pasley, J., & Heaton, P. (2007, in press). Is the linguistic content of speech less salient than its perceptual features in autism? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Järvinen-Pasley, A., Wallace, G.L., Ramus, F., Happé, F.G.E., & Heaton, P. (2007, in press). Enhanced perceptual processing of speech in autism. Developmental Science. Järvinen-Pasley, A., & Heaton, P. (2006, in press). Evidence for reduced domain-specificity in auditory processing in autism. Developmental Science. Korenberg, J.R., Dai, L., Bellugi, U., Järvinen-Pasley, A., Mills, D., Galaburda, A., Reiss, A., & Pober, B.R. (2007, in press). Deletion of 7q11.23 Genes and Williams Syndrome. In C.J. Epstein, R.P. Erickson, & A. Wynshaw-Boris (Eds.), Inborn Errors of Development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Publications pending Järvinen-Pasley, A., Peppé, S., King-Smith, G., & Heaton, P. (2007). Relationship between form and function level receptive prosodic abilities in autism. Under review for Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Järvinen-Pasley, A., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. Affiliative behavior in Williams syndrome: Dissociation between social-perceptual abilities and social-behavioral tendencies? Manuscript in preparation. Järvinen-Pasley, A., Tsuchiya, N., Leonard, M.K., Yam, A., Hill, K.J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. Autonomic Correlates of Processing Upright and Inverted Affective Faces in Williams Syndrome. Manuscript in preparation. Conference presentations Järvinen-Pasley, A., Tsuchiya, N., Leonard, M.K., Yam, A., Hill, K.J., Galaburda, A., Mills, D., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. (2007, November). Genes, Neural Systems, and Social Behavior: Autonomic Correlates of Processing Upright and Inverted Affective Faces in Williams Syndrome. 2007 Society for Neuroscience Annual Conference, San Diego, CA. Järvinen-Pasley, A., Reilly, J., Reiss, A.L., Korenberg, J.R., & Bellugi, U. (2006, April). Investigating the Relative Strengths of Social-Perceptual Abilities and Expressive Social Behaviors in Williams Syndrome [Abstract & Poster]. 2006 Annual Cognitive Neuroscience Society Meeting, San Francisco, CA. Järvinen, A., & Heaton, P. (2004, June). Sensitivity to Pitch Contour in Speech in Children with Autism [Poster]. UCL’s Centre for Human Communication Inaugural Conference on the Architecture of the Language Faculty, London, UK. Järvinen, A., & Heaton, P. (2004, September). Exploring the Default Mechanism in Autism with Respect to Speech: Is Perceptual Information More Salient than Semantics? [Oral Presentation]. The BPS Developmental Psychology Conference, Leeds, UK.