Home Page · About · Teaching · Research · Staff List · Links · The New Children's Hospital  · CHIMES

Dr Justin H G Williams

Senior Lecturer in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Tel + 44 (0)1224 557967
Fax + 44 (0)1224 557400
e-mail: justin.williams@abdn.ac.uk

Research Interests

• Developmental cognitive neuroscience of autism and social cognition
• The relationship of imitation to autism
• Neuroimaging and autism
• Action processing in Developmental Disorders
• Clinical Kinematics Group

Publications

Papers:

• Request reprints - justin.williams@abdn.ac.uk

van Swieten LM, van Bergen E, Williams JHG, Wilson AD, Plumb M, Kent SW, Mon-Williams M (2010) A Test of Motor (Not Executive) Planning in Developmental Coordination disorder and Autism. Journal of Experimental Psychology; 36:2 493-499

Hill, L, Williams JHG, Aucott L, Milne J, Thomson J, Greig J, Munro V, Mon-Williams M (2010) Exercising attention within the classroom. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology (In press)

Culmer PR, Levesley MC, Mon-Williams M, Willliams JHG (2009) A new tool for assessing human movement: The Kinematic Assessment Tool. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 184: 184-192

Neves-Pereira M, Müller B, Massie D, Williams JHG, O'Brien PCM, Hughes A, Shen S-B, St Clair D, Meidzybrodzka Z (2009) Deregulation of EIF4E: a novel mechanism for autism. Journal of Medical Genetics 46:759-765

Perra O, Williams JHG, Whiten A, Fraser L, Benzie H, Perrett DI (2008) Imitation and 'theory of mind' competencies in discrimination of autism from other neurodevelopmental disorders. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders 1: 456-468

Williams JHG (2008) Self-Other Relations in Social Development and Autism: Multiple Roles for Mirror Neurons and Other Brain Bases. Autism Research 1: 73-90

Pettit L, Charles J, Wilson AD, Plumb MS, Brockman A, Williams JHG, Mon-Williams M (2008) Constrained action selection in children with developmental co-ordination disorder. Human Movement Science 27 (2): 286-295

Plumb MS, Wilson AD, Mulroue A, Brockman A, Williams JHG, Mon-Williams, M (2008) Online corrections in children with and without DCD. Human Movement Science 27; (5): 695-704

Williams JHG, Perrett DI, Waiter GD, Pechey S. (2007) Differential effects of tryptophan depletion on emotion processing according to face direction. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience 264-273

Poobalan AS, Aucott LS, Ross L, Smith WCS, Helms PJ, Williams JHG (2007) Effects of treating postnatal depression on mother infant interaction and child development: Systematic Review. British Journal of Psychiatry 191:378-386

Williams JHG, Whiten A, Waiter GD, Pechey S, Perrett DI. (2007) Cortical and sub-cortical mechanisms at the core of imitation Social Neuroscience 2 (1) 66-78

Williams JH, Ross L. (2007) Consequences of prenatal toxin exposure for mental health in children and adolescents: A systematic review. European Journal of Child Adolescent Psychiatry 16 (4): 243-253

Fink B, Manning JT, Williams JHG, Podmore-Nappin C (2007) The 2nd to 4th Digit Ratio and Developmental Psychopathology in School-Aged Children. Personality and Individual Differences 42 (2): 369-379

Aicken MD, Wilson AD, Williams JHG, Mon-Williams M. (2007) Methodological issues in measures of imitative reaction times. Brain & Cognition. 63 (3): 304-8

van Bergen E, van Swieten L, Williams JHG, Mon-Williams M. (2007) The effect of orientation on prehension movement time. Experimental Brain Research 178 (2): 180-93

Williams JHG, Waiter GD, Gilchrist A, Perrett DI, Murray AD, Whiten A. (2006) Neural mechanisms of imitation and 'Mirror Neuron' functioning in autistic spectrum disorder. Neuropsychologia. 44 (4): 610-21

Williams JHG , Waiter GD, Perro O, Perrett DI, Whiten A. (2005) An FMRI Study of Joint Attention Experience. NeuroImage 25: 133-140

Waiter GD, Williams JHG, Murray AD, Gilchrist A, Perrett DI, Whiten A. (2005) Structural white matter deficits in high-functioning individuals with autistic spectrum disorder: a voxel based investigation. NeuroImage 24: 455-461

Rasalam AD, Dean JCS, Williams JHG , Moore SJ, Hailey H, Lloyd DJ, Turnpenny PD (2005) Characteristics of the Foetal Anticonvulsant Syndrome Associated Autistic Disorder (FACSAAD) Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology. 47:551-555

Williams JHG . (2005) Language is fundamentally a social affair. Commentary on: "From monkey-like action recognition to human language: An evolutionary framework for neurolinguistics" by M.A. Arbib. Behavioural and Brain Sciences 28:146-147

Williams JHG , Massaro DW, Peel,NJ, Bosseler A. & Suddendorf T. (2004) Visual-Auditory integration during speech imitation in autism. Research in Developmental Disabilities 25: 559-575

Waiter GD, Williams JHG , Murray AD, Gilchrist A, Perrett DI, and Whiten A. (2004) A voxel based investigation of brain structure in male adolescents with autistic spectrum disorder. Neuroimage 22 : 619-625

Williams JHG , Whiten A, & Singh T. (2004) A systematic review of imitation studies in autism. J of Aut and Developmental Disorders 34 : 285-299

Williams JHG , Greenhalgh KD, & Manning JT. (2003) Second to fourth finger ratio and developmental psychopathology and pre-school children. Early Human Development 72 : 57-65.

Williams JHG . (2001). Autism, imitation and mirror neurones. Neuroscience and Biobehavioural Reviews 25 , 287-295

Williams JHG. (1998). Editorial: Using behavioural ecology to understand depression. British Journal of Psychiatry 173 , 453-455.

Williams JHG . (1998) Audit of anticholinergic treatment in psychiatric patients. Psychiatric Bulletin : 23 , 22-24.

Williams JHG , O'Brien JT, and Cullum S. (1997) The time course of response to electroconvulsive therapy in elderly depressed subjects. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 12 , 563-566.

Books:

Williams JHG. Directedness, Egocentrism and Autism. In McGregor E, Nunez M, Williams K, Comez JC eds. An Integrated View of Autism: Perspectives from Neurocognitive, Clinical and Intervention Research. Blackwells (2007)

Williams JHG. Copying strategies by people with autistic spectrum disorder: why only imitation leads to social cognitive development. In: Imitation and Social Learning in Robots, Humans and Animals: Behavioural, Social and Communicative Dimensions. Edited by C. Nehaniv and K Dautenhahn. Cambridge University Press

Rogers SJ, Williams JHG. (Editors) Imitation and the Social Mind: in autism and typical development. Guildford Press, New York 2006

Chapters:

1. Rogers, SJ, Williams JHG. Imitation in Autism: Findings and Controversies
2. Williams JHG, Waiter GD. Neuroimaging self-other mapping in autism
3. Pennington B, Williams JHG, Rogers SJ. Conclusions

Williams J. & Ness B. Systemic Practice (Family Therapy). Page in the Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialities. Eds. Collier J.A.B., Longmore J.M. & Harvey J.H. Oxford University Press (2003)

Williams J. & Miller B. Talking to young people about sex. Page in the Oxford Handbook of Clinical Specialities. Eds. Collier J.A.B., Longmore J.M. & Harvey J.H. Oxford University Press 2003

Abstracts:

Wilson AD, Plumb M, Williams JHG. et al 'Sticky attention' in autistic spectrum disorder-visual psychophysics and movement Perception 35: 132-132 Suppl S

Dean JCS, Williams JHG , Rasalam AD, et al. Reversal of sex ratio in fetal anticonvulsant syndrome associated autistic disorder: possible evidence that some anticonvulsants disturb imprinted genes? American Journal of Human Genetics (2002) 71 (4): 31 Suppl. S

Rasalam D, Williams JHG , Moore SJ, Hailey H, Lloyd DJ, Turnpenny PD, Dean JCS. Fetal anticonvulsant syndrome associated autistic disorder. Journal of Medical Genetics 39 : 143 Suppl. 1 Sep 2002

Clinical Responsibilities:

• Lead Consultant Psychiatrist in the Department of Child and Family Psychiatry, Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital
• Training Programme Director, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, North East Scotland
• Chair, University of Aberdeen College of Life Sciences and Medicine Ethics Review Board
• Psychiatrist to the Lowit Unit for children with severe and complex mental health problems

Honorary Consultant in the Department of Child and Family Psychiatry, Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital.

Professional Memberships:

• INSAR - International Society for Autism Research
• PSSBP - Society for the Study of Behavioural Phenotypes (www.ssbp.co.uk)
• ACAMH - Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health (www.acamh.org.uk)
• RCPsych - Royal College of Psychiatrists (www.rcpsych.ac.uk)