Dr Deborah Riby
Lecturer

  • Email: deborah.riby@ncl.ac.uk
  • Telephone: +44 (0) 191 222 6557
  • Fax: +44 (0) 191 222 5622
  • Address: Room 4.26
    School of Psychology
    Ridley Building 1
    Framlington Place
    Newcastle-upon-Tyne
    NE1 7RU

Introduction

VISIT THE WEBSITE OF OUR BPS FUNDED SEMINAR SERIES ON NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS:

http://www.neurodevelopmentaldisorders-seminarseries.co.uk/

 

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I have been a Lecturer in the School of Psychology, Newcastle University since 1st March 2008. I teach across the undergraduate degree program for psychology and I supervise postgraduate PhD and DClinPsy students. You can find out more about my teaching committments / roles in the Teaching tab.

In terms of research, I focus on socio-cognitive development in typical and atypical development. My research focuses on the neuro-developmental disorders of Williams syndrome (WS) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). I am specifically interested in face perception: The ability to perceive and interpret facial signals such as expressions of emotion or shifts of eye gaze. I am very interested in the social importance of competent face processing - for example using faces to make judgements of trust and approachability. In some disorders of development individuals have real problems with this type of face cue. Most recently, I have been looking at gaze behaviours in naturalistic interactions - moving away from computer-based tasks for a while to study real life interaction styles in typical and atypical development. You can find out more about my research and publications in the Research tab.

 

VISIT THE WEBSITE OF OUR WILLIAMS SYNDROME RESEARCH GROUP:

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/psychology/research/WilliamsSyndrome.htm

VISIT THE WEBSITE OF OUR DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY GROUP:

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/psychology/research/DevelopmentalResearch.htm

 

 

 

VISIT THE WEBSITE OF OUR WILLIAMS SYNDROME RESEARCH GROUP:

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/psychology/research/WilliamsSyndrome.htm 

 

 

WE WILL BE RUNNING A SEMINAR SERIES FUNDED BY THE BPS WITH KINGSTON UNIVERSITY AND THE INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION IN 2012-2013 ENTITLED:

'Neuro-developmental disorders: Exploring sensitive methods of assessment across development 

http://www.neurodevelopmentaldisorders-seminarseries.co.uk/ 

 

Research Interests

As mentioned in the Profile tab, my research focuses typical and atypical socio-cognitive development; specifically in Williams syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder. It is worth remembering that to understand what is 'different' in these neuro-developmental disorders we also have to understand what we mean by 'typical' in the general population.

Across various different project I collaborate with Prof. Gwyneth Doherty-Sneddon (Northumbria University), Prof. Peter Hancock (Stirling University), Dr. Elisa Back (Kingston University), Dr. Sinead Rhodes (Strathclyde University), Dr. Colin Hamilton (Northumbria University), and Prof. Kim Cornish (Monash University). As well as these external collaborations I work closely with Prof. Vicki Bruce and Dr. Jacqui Rodgers from Newcastle University.

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Funding

 

£3,000 British Psychological Society Research Seminar Series grant: 'Neurodevelopmental disorders: Exploring sensitive methods of assessment across development@ to J Van Herwegen, E Farran and D Riby (series to run 2012-2013) 

 £7,468 British Academy - 'Can individuals with Williams syndrome make social evaluations from faces? The assessment of trust and links to approachability' 2011-

£7,500 Nuffield Foundation - 'The role of attention mechanisms in the gaze behaviour of individuals with Williams syndrome' to DR (from Jan 09)

£258,000 ESRC - ‘Cognitive load in face-to-face interactions: Evidence from neuro-developmental disorders’ to G Doherty-Sneddon & D Riby. July 2008 (from December 2008)

£80,712 ESRC - ‘Applying Eye Tracking to the Exploration of Social Functioning in Autism and Williams syndrome’. To P Hancock & D Riby Jan 07-Feb 08. Grant Report Rating - 'Outstanding'.
 

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Publications

Below is a comphrenesive list on my publications - some of these can also be found in the Publications tab (but for various reasons I can not get them all to show in there!):

 

Peer reviewed journal articles  

Riby, D. M., Whittle, L., & Doherty-Sneddon, G. (in press). Physiological Reactivity to Faces via Live and Video Mediated Communication in Typical and Atypical Development. Journal of Clinical & Experimental Neuropsychology.

 

 

Riby, D. M., Doherty-Sneddon, G., & Whittle, L. (in press). Face-to-Face Interference in Typical and Atypical Development. Developmental Science.

 

 

Doherty-Sneddon, G., Riby, D. M., & Whittle, L. (in press). Gaze Aversion as a Cognitive Load Management Strategy in Autism and Williams syndrome. Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry.

 

Jawaid, A., Riby, D. M., Owens, J., White, S. W., Tarar, T., & Schulz, P. E. (in press). ‘Too withdrawn’ or ‘too friendly’: considering social vulnerability in two neuro-developmental disorders. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research.

   

Riby, D. M., Brown, P. H., Jones, N., & Hanley, M. (in press). Faces cause less distraction in Autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

 

Rodgers, J., Riby, D. M., Janes, E., Connolly, B., & McConachie, H. (in press).  Anxiety and Repetitive Behaviours in Autism Spectrum Disorders and Williams syndrome: A Cross-syndrome Comparison. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

 

Rhodes, S. M., Riby, D. M., Fraser, E. M., Campbell, L. E., (2011). The extent of working memory deficits associated with Williams syndrome: Exploration of verbal and spatial domains and executively controlled processes. Brain and Cognition, 77, 208-214.

 

Riby, D. M., Jones, N., Brown, P. H., Robinson, L., Langton, S. R. H., Bruce, V., & Riby, L. M. (2011). Attention to faces in Williams syndrome. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 41, 1228-1239.

 

Rhodes, S., Riby, D. M., Matthews, K., & Coghill, D. R. (2011). ADHD and Williams syndrome: shared behavioural and neuropsychological profiles. Journal of Clinical & Experimental Neuropsychology, 33, 147–156.

 

Riby, D. M., & Back, E. (2010). Can individuals with Williams syndrome interpret mental states from moving faces? Neuropsychologia, 48, 1914–1922.

 

Rhodes, S., Riby, D. M., Park, J., Fraser, E., Campbell, L. E. (2010). Neuropsychological functioning and executive control in WS. Neuropsychologia, 48, 1216-1226.

 

Doherty-Sneddon, G., Riby, D. M., Calderwood, L., & Whittle, L. (2010).Visual cues of communication in children. Enfance, 3, 339-354.

 

Riby, D. M. (2010). Show me your eyes: Evidence from Williams syndrome. Visual Cognition. 18, 801-815.

 

Jawaid, A., Riby, D. M., Egridere, S., Schmolck, H., Kass, J. S., & Schulz, P. E. (2010). Approachability in Williams Syndrome. Neuropsychologia, 48, 1521-1523.

 

Doherty-Sneddon, G., Riby, D. M., Calderwood, L., & Ainsworth, L. (2009). Stuck on you: Face-to-face arousal and gaze aversion in Williams syndrome. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, 14, 510-523.

 

Riby, D. M., Riby, L. M., & Reay, J. (2009). Differential sensitivity to rotations of facial features in the Thatcher illusion. Psychological Reports, 105, 721-726.

 

Riby, D. M., & Doherty, M. J. (2009). Tracking eye movements proves informative for the study of gaze direction detection in autism. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders. 3, 723-733.

 

Riby, D. M., & Hancock, P. J. B. (2009). Looking at Movies and Cartoons: Eye-tracking evidence from Williams syndrome and Autism. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research. 53, 169–181.

 

Riby, D. M., & Hancock, P. J. B. (2009). Do faces capture the attention of individuals with Williams syndrome or Autism? Evidence from tracking eye movements. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 39, 421-431.

 

Riby, D. M., Doherty-Sneddon, G., & Bruce, V. (2009). The eyes or the mouth? Feature salience and unfamiliar face processing in Williams syndrome and autism. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 62, 189–203.

 

Saito, S., Jarrold, C., & Riby, D. M. (2009). Exploring the forgetting mechanisms in working memory: Evidence from a reasoning span task. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 62, 1401 – 1419.

 

Riby, D. M., & Hancock, P. J. B. (2008) Viewing it differently: Social scene perception in Williams syndrome and Autism. Neuropsychologia. 46, 2855–2860.

 

Riby, D. M., Doherty-Sneddon, G., & Bruce, V. (2008). Exploring face perception in disorders of development: Evidence from Williams syndrome and autism. Journal of Neuropsychology: Special edition Face Perception, 2, 47-64.

 

Riby, L. M., McLaughlin, J., & Riby, D. M. (2008). Lifestyle, glucose regulation and cognitive enhancing properties of glucose load in middle-aged adults. British Journal of Nutrition, 100, 1128-1134.

 

Riby, D. M., Doherty-Sneddon, G., & Bruce, V. (2008). Atypical unfamiliar face processing in Williams syndrome: What can it tell us about typical familiarity effects? Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, 13, 47-58.

 

Brock, J., Jarrold, C., Farran, E. K., Laws, G., & Riby, D. M. (2007). Do children with Williams syndrome really have good vocabulary knowledge? Methods for comparing cognitive and linguistic abilities in developmental disorders. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics, 21, 673-688.

 

Langton, S. R. H., O'Donnell, C., Riby, D. M. & Ballantyne, C. J. (2006). Gaze cues influence the allocation of attention in natural scene viewing. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 59, 2056-2064.

 

Bayliss, D. M., Jarrold, C., Baddeley, A. D., Gunn, D. M., & Leigh, E. (2005). Mapping the developmental constraints on working memory span performance. Developmental Psychology, 41, 579-597.

 

Bayliss, D., Jarrold, C., Baddeley, A., & Gunn, D. M. (2005). The relationship between short-term memory and working memory: Complex span made simple? Memory, 13, 414-421.

 

Jarrold, C., Cowan, N., Hewes, A. K., & Riby, D. M. (2004). Speech timing and verbal short-term memory in Down syndrome and Williams syndrome: Evidence for comparable yet contrasting deficits. Journal of Memory and Learning, 51, 365-380. 

 

Gunn, D. M., & Jarrold, C. (2004). Raven's matrices performance in Down Syndrome: Evidence of unusual errors. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 25, 443-457. 

 

Laws, G. & Gunn, D. (2004). Phonological memory as a predictor of language development in Down Syndrome: A five-year follow up study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 326-337.

 

Bayliss, D., Jarrold, C., Gunn, D. M., & Baddeley, A. (2003). The complexities of complex span: Explaining individual differences in working memory in children and adults, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 132, 71-92.

 

Laws, G. & Gunn, D. (2002). Relationships between reading, phonological skills and language development in individuals with Down syndrome: A five year follow-up study. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 15, 527-548.

 

Edited book chapters

 

Riby, D. M. (2011). Face Processing and Social Interactions. In E. K. Farran & A. Karmiloff-Smith (Eds). Neurodevelopmental disorders across the lifespan: A Neuroconstructivist approach.  Oxford: Oxford University Press.

 

Riby, D. M., Bruce, V., & Jawaid, A. (2011). Everyone’s friend? The case of Williams syndrome. In B. Oakley, A. Knafo, G. Madhavan, & D. S. Wilson (Eds.) Pathological Altruism. Oxford University Press. Chapter 9.

 

Riby, D. M. & Porter, M. (2010). Williams syndrome. In. J. Holmes (Ed). Developmental Disorders & Interventions: Advances in Child Development and Behavior. Burlington: Academic Press. Chapter 5 (pp. 163-209)

 

Brock, J., Einav, S., & Riby, D. M. (2008). The other end of the spectrum? Social cognition in Williams syndrome. In V. Reid, & T. Striano (Eds.) Social cognition: Development, Neuroscience and Autism. Oxford: Blackwell.

 

 

 

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Research Roles

SEE PREVIOUS ARTICLES ABOUT OUR RESEARCH:

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=eyes-mental-disorders&sc=CAT_MB_20080917

http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/in-the-news-18/1

 

VISIT OUR DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY RESEARCH GROUP PAGE: 

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/psychology/research/DevelopmentalResearch.htm

 

 

Undergraduate Teaching

I contribute to teaching across the undergraduate psychology degree program - being module leader for two Stage 1 modules, Stage 2 Director and module leader for one Stage 3 module. In my teaching I aim to combine formal lecture format information delivery with interactive learning opportunities for all students.

I am the Stage 2 Teaching Director of the Psychology undergraduate degree program. 

PSY1002: Developmental and Social Psychology (module leader; 10 credits, Semester 2; Stage 1)


PSY1010: Research Methods & Skills 1 (Statistics component leader; 20 Credit module; Stage 1 Sem. 1)


PSY3027: Disorders of Development: A Psychological Perspective (module leader; 20 credits, Stage 3 Sem. 1)

 

PSY3097: Empirical Project. I supervise approximately 6 final Stage students per year for their empirical project. These projects tend to be on aspects of developmental psychology, especially face perception and social cognition. 

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Postgraduate Supervision

I supervise PhD students as well as DClinPsy students. For the DClinPsy supervision includes the LSRP, critical review and literature review assignments.

PhD Supervision:

Karri Gillespie. Face Processing and its’ Relevance when Designing Learning Environments for Pupils with Autism. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION 

Rachel Cole-Fletcher. Visual social cognition in typical and atypical development. 2010-

Joanne Greer. Cognitive Ageing in Williams syndrome.  2010- (part-time)

Nooraini Darus. ADHD and Autism: Executive functions, sensory processing and anxiety. 2011-

Hannah Kirk. Social attention in Williams and Fragile X syndrome. 2012-

Fay Fletcher. Sleep and cognition in neuro-developmental disorders. 2012-

 

Doctorate in Clinical Psychology Supervision:

Emily Janes. Repetitive behaviours, sensory processing and anxiety associated with Williams syndrome. 2008-2010. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.

Gemma Hymers. Face to face communication in autistic spectrum disorders. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.

Ruth Fleck. Hyperacusis and sensory processing in Williams syndrome. 2010-

Katie Little. Social Profiles in Williams syndrome. 2010-

Fiona Clark. Emotion and anxiety in Williams syndrome. 2010- 

Stephanie Albinson. Evaluations of Trust and Paranoid Ideation. 2011- 

 

MPhil Supervision:

Tascha Radford. Tactile Sentitivity in Neuro-developmental disorders. 2011 -