The 1992 American Association on Mental Retardation definition of mental retardation is critiqued. The definition is seen as lacking precision and necessitating identification dependent upon assessment of behavioral dimensions for which there are no reliable measurement instruments. These problems, which are attributed to advocacy concerns, are…

The effectiveness of fenfluramine with hyperserotonergic autistic individuals (n=28 and ages 6-30) was evaluated. Evaluation of videotape recordings of individual behaviors suggested that fenfluramine failed to increase communicative behaviors or decrease stereotypic behaviors and inappropriate behaviors although a serotonergic effect was found in…

Examined health behaviors in college students (n=20,721) collected over a 10-year period. Found gender differences and a negative relationship between alcohol and cigarette use. Found drinking was a frequent behavior among college students and more common among men than women. Cigarette smoking was more commonly reported by women than by men. (ABL)

This study investigated aggressive, withdrawn, and prosocial behavior in 21 physically abused, 26 nonabused-neglected, and 21 nonabused-nonneglected children, ages 5-8. No single dimension adequately discriminated children in each of the three groups. Full discrimination was achieved only when aggressive, withdrawn, and prosocial behaviors were…

This article shows the usefulness of understanding visual behaviors in the diagnosis of various types of visual impairments that are due to ocular and cortical disorders. Behaviors discussed include nystagmus, ocular motor dyspraxia, head position, close viewing, field loss adaptations, mannerisms, photophobia, and abnormal color perception. (JDD)

The rates and durations of stereotypic behaviors in four adolescents with severe mental retardation were measured during two daily vocational training sessions and during contiguous periods of leisure in special education classrooms. The major differences in stereotypy between leisure and vocational training were differences in episode length.…

This literature review of family factors associated with externalizing behavior disorders such as hyperactivity and aggression in preschoolers found that: (1) preschoolers with externalizing disorders had families who were more likely than comparison families to have at least one type of negative characteristic; and (2) family characteristics were…

Self-injurious behavior was examined in a case study of head-banging by an 8-year-old girl with profound mental retardation and an autistic disorder. Trajectories of arm movements and impact forces were determined from dynamic analysis of videotapes. Cycle-to-cycle consistency in the qualitative dynamics of the limb motions and impact forces…

This study compared maladaptive behavior in 23 people with Prader-Willi syndrome due to paternal deletion and in 23 age- and gender-matched subjects with maternal uniparental disomy. Controlling for IQs, the deletion cases showed significantly higher maladaptive ratings, more symptom-related distress, and more behavior problems. Findings suggest a…

Explored externalizing behavior problems in suburban Head Start children. Found parents identified almost one-quarter of children as having externalizing problems in the borderline/clinical range, with twice as many girls as boys having borderline/clinical levels of behavior problems. Found children with parent-identified externalizing problems…

Examines "social norms" marketing, an effort by several colleges and universities to encourage healthy student behaviors by countering perceptions of unhealthy "cool" behaviors and stressing the positive behaviors of "most" students. Examples of posters and other marketing strategies are from Virginia Commonwealth University, Gustavus Adolphus…

This response to a previous article on behavioral manifestations of child sexual abuse (EC 619 258) stresses the importance of empirical research and the avoidance of assumptions that incidents of sexual abuse are the sentinel events in the life of a child, when the child's dysfunctional milieu may provide far more traumatic events. (DB)

Two studies investigated whether 10- to 11-month-olds possess skills for parsing ongoing behavior along boundaries correlated with initiation and completion of intentions. Found that infants showed renewed interest in test videos in which motion paused in the midst of an actor's pursuit of intentions; suspended motion at intentional boundary…

Clinicians need to know the likelihood of a condition given a positive or negative diagnostic test. In this study a Bayesian analysis of the Clinical Behavior Checklist for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (CBCPID) to predict depression in people with intellectual disability was conducted. The CBCPID was administered to 92 adults with…

In this article, the author discusses "The Et Tu Brute Complex." More specifically, this phenomenon occurs when a person, instead of supporting and befriending himself, orally condemns himself in front of other people and becomes his own worst enemy. This is a form of compulsive self-hatred. Most often, the victim of this complex is unaware of the…