Daniela Plesa Skwerer, Ph.D.

Instructor

Phone: 617-414-1308
Fax: 617-414-1301
Email: dplesas@bu.edu
Location: E-842A, Evans Bldg.

Dr. Plesa Skwerer received her doctorate in Developmental Psychology from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York in 2001. She joined the Laboratory of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience directed by Dr. Tager-Flusberg in the same year, first at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center/University or Massachusetts Medical Center, and later at the Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Plesa Skwerer is currently a principal investigator in the Laboratory of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, conducting research on social-emotional development in children with Williams syndrome and other neurodevelopmental disorders. This research employs a combination of laboratory-based behavioral observations, developmental assessments and parental reports, to examine the ability of children with and without developmental disorders to express and regulate their affective behavior. Another focus of her work is exploring the ways in which adolescents and adults with Williams syndrome attend to, perceive, and process social information, using computerized behavioral tests, eye tracking, psychophysiological measures and standardized assessments of cognitive functioning. The general goals of this research are to understand the neurocognitive bases of the social abilities and disabilities in children and adults with Williams syndrome and other developmental disorders. Dr. Plesa Skwerer is a member of the Graduate Student Committee of the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology.

Recent Publications

Plesa Skwerer, D., Borum, L., Verbalis, A., Schofield, C., Crawford, N., Ciciolla, L. & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2009). Autonomic responses to dynamic displays of facial expressions in adolescents and adults with Williams syndrome. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 4(1), 93-100.

Crawford, N., Edelson, L.R., Plesa Skwerer, D., & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2008). Expressive language style among adolescents and adults with Williams syndrome. Applied Psycholinguistics, 29(4), 585-602.

Plesa Skwerer, D., Schofield, C., Verbalis, A., Faja, S & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2007). Receptive prosody in adolescents and adults with Williams syndrome. Language and cognitive processes, 22(2), 247-271.

Tager-Flusberg, H., Plesa-Skwerer, D., Schofield, C., Verbalis, A., & Simons, D.J. (2007). Change detection as a tool for assessing attentional deployment in atypical populations: The case of Williams syndrome. Cognition, Brain, Behavior, XI(3), 491-506.

Plesa Skwerer, D., Verbalis, A., Schofield, C., Faja, S., & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2006). Social-perceptual abilities in adolescents and adults with Williams syndrome. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 23(2), 338-349.

Plesa Skwerer, D., Faja, S., Verbalis, A., Schofield, C., & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2006). Perceiving facial and vocal expressions of emotion in Williams syndrome. American Journal of Mental Retardation, 111(1), 15-26.

Plesa Skwerer, D., Sullivan, K., Joffre, K., & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2004). Self concept in people with Williams syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 25, 119-138.

Tager-Flusberg, H., Plesa Skwerer, D., Faja, S., & Joseph, R.M. (2003). People with Williams syndrome process faces holistically. Cognition, 89, 11-24.