The emerging etiological model for developmental disorders, like dyslexia, is probabilistic and multifactorial while the prevailing cognitive model has been deterministic and often focused on a single cognitive cause, such as a phonological deficit as the cause of dyslexia. So there is a potential contradiction in our explanatory frameworks for…

This directory provides a comprehensive guide to the staff of agencies and organizations concerned with mental retardation, developmental disabilities, and related disabilities. Street addresses, contact numbers (phone or fax), e-mail addresses, Web page addresses, and names of individuals holding staff positions are usually provided for each…

Three regional workshops held by the Alabama Center for Higher Education to sensitize minority professionals to the severely involved population and to encourage participation of minority professionals in the developmental disabilities service system are described. Background information on P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children…

This introduction to basic principles of psychotropic drug use in developmentally disabled patients is intended to provide personnel working in the field with information on appropriate clinical use as well as potential risks. Presented in outline form, information is provided on five classes of psychotropic drugs: antipsychotics; antidepressants;…

The report summarizes: (1) 1988 program data for state Protection and Advocacy Systems for persons with developmental disabilities and persons with mental illness, and (2) 1988 program data for Client Assistance Programs. The data are derived from reports from 56 states and territories. In addition to nationwide data totals, each state's…

The study investigated intrapersonal and interpersonal behaviors and events in self-injurious disabled persons (2-22 years old). The study involved four components: (1) a survey of 82 Ss using the self-injurious behavior (SIB) Perception Questionnaire, Antecedent/Consequent Card Sort, and the American Association on Mental Deficiency Adaptive…

Basic qualitative research was conducted in classrooms of two teachers in order to examine the nature of their enacted curriculum. Hidden curriculum was investigated as one component of the enacted curriculum in the two classrooms. One teacher taught a regular first grade class, and the other taught a class of developmentally handicapped children…

The paper describes the efforts of Stepping Stones Growth Center, a vocational training organization which places persons with developmental disabilities into competitive employment. Two programs within Stepping Stones feature training for boat maintenance and janitorial and grounds maintenance. Placement preparation is described in terms of its…

The booklet presents the text of the Developmental Disabilities Act of 1984, which retains most provisions of, amends some provisions of, and reorganizes the parts of, the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act. Following brief background information, a section-by-section summary of the Act's revisions is offered. A…

The report focuses on the National Association of State Mental Retardation Program Directors' project to produce an indepth analysis of income maintenance for the developmentally disabled. The following issues were considered: the disability determination process; eligibility for rehabilitation services; incentives and disincentives to employment;…

The role of family therapy in a clinic for developmentally delayed preschoolers is examined. Two types of families are said to benefit from the family therapy approach: families in which the child's needs are misunderstood or somehow misread, and families whose dysfunctional transactional patterns antedated the child's problems. Initial screening…

Assessment and educational programing for linguistically different children who are also experiencing developmental disability is complicated by a number of controversial issues, including lack of developmental data on the course of bilingual language acquisition and the problem of differentiating between a language disorder and linguistic…

This three-part study of early identification of developmental deficiencies in high risk infants was undertaken to determine whether infant performance can be predicted from neonatal and developmental criteria. Part I of the study began in 1977 and used 284 high risk infants as subjects. Part II was initiated in 1978. Subjects were 14 full-term,…

The study compared the effectiveness of two commonly used questioning sequences with four preschool developmentally delayed male children, aged 3 to 5 years, and their four adult trainers. The Full Model to Open Question sequence began with presenting the child with a model of the correct answer and then proceeded to increasingly less restricted…