Hayley Leonard

University of Surrey · School of Psychology

Many individuals with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) demonstrate executive functioning difficulties on standardized assessments, yet these difficulties have not been investigated using ecologically-valid measures. 26 adults with probable DCD (pDCD), and 26 typically developing (TD) adults completed selected background measures and the Ja...

The underrepresentation of certain groups in computing has led to increasing efforts in the United States (US) to develop computing curricula that is responsive and relevant to a more diverse group of learners. In England, despite a mandatory computing curriculum from age 5, a similar problem is seen in terms of representation in formal Computer Sc...

Despite increasing access to computing curricula within schools, the number of young people from diverse backgrounds choosing computing qualifications and careers is still low. It is important to understand the reasons for this lack of engagement directly from young people in order to identify potential avenues for intervention. Furthermore, it is...

Background The prevalence of motor impairment is high in ADHD, but we do not know if this stems from infancy. Aims 1) to compare the acquisition of motor milestones across three groups: Typically Developing (TD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD); 2) to determine the relationship between...

Delays within the motor domain are often overlooked as an early surveillance marker for autism. The present study evaluated motor difficulties and its potential as an early predictive marker for later autism likelihood in a cohort of infants (N = 96) showing early behavioral signs of autism aged 9–14 months. The motor domain was evaluated using the...

Learning to drive is a significant event for the transition to adulthood and delay or avoidance may have social, practical, and psychological implications. For those with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD/Dyspraxia), driving presents a considerable challenge, and the literature shows that there are differences in driving ability between indi...

Motor proficiency reflects the ability to perform precise and coordinated movements in different contexts. Previous research suggests that different profiles of motor proficiency may be associated with different cognitive functioning characteristics thus suggesting an interaction between cognitive and motor processes. The current study investigated...

Background Individuals with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) report elevated executive function (EF) difficulties and internalising symptoms. Previous research suggests EF is important for wellbeing, yet no research has examined its role in internalising symptoms in DCD. Aims To explore an indirect relationship between DCD and internalisi...

•Background: The prevalence of motor impairment is high in ADHD, but we do not know if this stems from infancy.•Aims: 1) to compare the acquisition of motor milestones across three groups: Typically Developing (TD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD); 2) to determine the relationship betwee...

Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) are diagnosed based on motor difficulties. However, they also exhibit difficulties in several other cognitive domains, including visuospatial processing, executive functioning and attention. One account of the difficulties seen in DCD proposes an impairment in internal forward modelling, i.e.,...

Previous research suggests that there is an interaction between cognitive and motor processes. This has been investigated throughout development and in different conditions related to motor impairment. The current study addressed a gap in the literature by investigating this interaction in the general population of healthy adults with different pro...

Background Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder which affects around 5% of children but is often not detected by clinicians. Aims The aim of the current study was to investigate whether parents of children with DCD report clinically-significant levels of parenting stress, and to assess a number of factors cont...

Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) are diagnosed based on motor difficulties. However, they also exhibit difficulties in several other cognitive domains, including visuospatial processing, executive functioning and attention. One account of the difficulties seen in DCD proposes an impairment in internal forward modelling, i.e.,...

This study examined emotion understanding and motor skills as predictors of children's understanding of faux pas. Faux paus situations are those in which someone causes unintentional offence or behaves inappropriately. Understanding of faux pas requires knowledge of social norms in specific situations as well as emotion understanding. Misunderstand...

Developmental coordination disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder primarily characterised by motor coordination significantly below that expected for an individual’s age, in the absence of neurological or intellectual deficits (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). This poorer coordination has a significant negative impact on activities of da...

Background Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) affects 5%–6% of children. There is growing evidence that DCD is associated with greater levels of internalising symptoms (i.e. depression and anxiety). This is the first systematic review and meta‐analysis to explore the magnitude of this effect, the quality of the evidence and potential moderat...

There has been considerable debate and interest in the factor structure of executive functioning (EF). For children and young people, there is evidence of a progression from a single factor to a more differentiated structure, although the precise nature of these factors differs between investigations. The purpose of the current study was to look at...

Difficulties with social interaction have been reported in both children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD), although these disorders have very different diagnostic characteristics. To date, assessment of social skills in a DCD population has been limited to paper-based assessment or p...

Aim: Executive function impairments have been identified in children with poor motor skills, with and without a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder (DCD). However, most studies are cross-sectional. This study investigates the development of executive function in children with poor motor skills over 2 years. Method: Children aged 7 t...

Previous research shows that the development of response inhibition and drawing skill are linked. The current research investigated whether this association reflects a more fundamental link between response inhibition and motor control. In Experiment 1, 3- and 4-year-olds (n = 100) were tested on measures of inhibition, fine motor control, and draw...

Previous research has suggested that infant motor skills may be affected by older siblings but has not considered whether this is due to specific characteristics of the older sibling or of the quality of the sibling relationship. The current study used a longitudinal diary method to record infant motor milestones from 23 infants with older siblings...

Motor and social difficulties are often found in children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and with developmental coordination disorder (DCD), to varying degrees. This study investigated the extent of overlap of these problems in children aged 7-10 years who had a diagnosis of either ASD or DCD, compared to typically-developing controls. Chil...

Throughout development, we gain increasing control over our bodies, allowing us to move around our environment and manipulate and use objects. This developing motor control is key to our understanding of the properties of our environment (Piaget, 1953). Being able to crawl or walk affects infants' understanding of the distance between objects, as w...

Increased anxiety and depression symptoms have been reported in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders, and have been found to be associated with motor coordination difficulties, but little is known about the aetiology of these associations. This study aimed to assess genetic, shared (making twins/siblings alike) and non-shared (individual-s...

The current study assessed a comprehensive range of executive functions (EFs) in children with poor motor skills, comparing profiles of children with a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and those identified with motor difficulties (MD). Children in both groups performed more poorly than typically developing controls on nonverba...

Motor skills and cognition have often been studied separately, but there is increasing understanding of the close relationship between these abilities over development. Motor coordination difficulties are central to the diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and recent evidence suggests that certain cognitive processes, known as ‘e...

The aim of the current paper was to use data from a prospective study to assess the impact of early motor skills on the rate of language development in infants with an older sibling with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), who are at increased risk of developing ASD themselves. Infants were tested prospectively at four points (7, 14, 24 and 36 months),...

A previous study reported that children with poor motor skills, classified as having motor difficulties (MD) or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), produced more errors in a motor response inhibition task compared to typically developing (TD) children but did not differ in verbal inhibition errors. The present study investigated whether thes...

Background Configural processing in face recognition is a sensitivity to the spacing between facial features. It has been argued both that its presence represents a high level of expertise in face recognition, and also that it is a developmentally vulnerable process.Method We report a cross-syndrome investigation of the development of configural fa...

Previous research has reported mixed findings regarding executive function (EF) abilities in developmental coordination disorder (DCD), which is diagnosed on the basis of significant impairments in motor skills. The current study aimed to assess whether these differences in study outcomes could result from the relative motor loads of the tasks used...

Recently, evidence of poor or atypical motor skills in autism spectrum disorder has led some to argue that motor impairment is a core feature of the condition. The current study uses a longitudinal prospective design to assess the development of motor skills of 20 children at increased risk of developing autism spectrum disorder, who were recruited...

Background Motor development allows infants to gain knowledge of the world but its vital role in social development is often ignored. MethodA systematic search for papers investigating the relationship between motor and social skills was conducted, including research in typical development and in Developmental Coordination Disorder, Autism Spectrum...

Analyses were conducted in order to investigate motor development in younger siblings of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Infants at familial risk and low risk of developing ASD were tested longitudinally between the ages of 7 and 36 months. Data were analysed from motor scales on the Mullen Scales of Early Learning and the V...

Recently, evidence of poor or atypical motor skills in autism spectrum disorder has led some to argue that motor impairment is a core feature of the condition. The current study uses a longitudinal prospective design to assess the development of motor skills of 20 children at increased risk of developing autism spectrum disorder, who were recruited...

Previous research into face processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has revealed atypical biases towards particular facial information during identity recognition. Specifically, a focus on features (or high spatial frequencies) has been reported for both face and non-face processing in ASD. The current study investigated the development of spa...

Background: Previous research has suggested that Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by a local bias, or a reliance on stimulus features. In face processing, this could impair recognition, as it represents a different strategy from the more global or configural approach seen in most typically-developing controls. Objectives: The curre...

Background: Prospective studies into infants at-risk of developing autism have found motor atypicalities between the ages of 6 and 24 months (e.g., Landa & Garrett-Mayer, 2006). These motor symptoms often precede the problems in social-communicative development associated with autism (Rogers, 2009). Objectives: The aim of the analyses was to...

The current study investigated whether contrasting face recognition abilities in autism and Williams syndrome could be explained by different spatial frequency biases over developmental time. Typically-developing children and groups with Williams syndrome and autism were asked to recognise faces in which low, middle and high spatial frequency bands...

Previous research has found that adults rely on middle spatial frequencies for face recognition. The objectives of the present study were to follow the development of the mid-band bias in the typical population from early childhood and to compare this development in autism and Williams syndrome. The current paradigm was adapted from the adult liter...

Background: Previous research has suggested that autism may be characterised by a local bias in visuo-spatial tasks, including face processing. One possible cause of this could be a low-level bias towards high spatial frequencies. As typically-developing adults tend to rely on middle spatial frequencies for face recognition, a persistent bias towar...

Previous research has suggested that a mid-band of spatial frequencies is critical to face recognition in adults, but few studies have explored the development of this bias in children. We present a paradigm adapted from the adult literature to test spatial frequency biases throughout development. Faces were presented on a screen with particular sp...