Gestural joint attention behaviors, personal pronoun use, and spontaneous communicative behavior were compared in 11 autistic children and 11 children with developmental language delay (DLD). DLD children responded correctly to joint attention interactions more often and their spontaneous gestural behavior was more communicative and…

The Delphi technique was used to obtain a list of perceived training needs of Australian staff working in the field of residential care for people with severe developmental disabilities. The second round gave staff an opportunity to set priorities (such as developing a homelike atmosphere). (Author/DB)

A forward-chaining, partial-task training method was found effective in teaching bill paying skills via check writing to four adults with developmental disabilities attending a day treatment program. The skills were maintained over a two-month follow-up and generalized across novel types of bills. Bank personnel and teachers validated the improved…

A specific progressive muscle relaxation training procedure was combined with auditory electromyographic (EMG) biofeedback, modeling, and reinforcement procedures to teach relaxation skills to 32 mentally retarded adults. The procedure was effective in reducing subjects' EMG levels and activity levels. Intellectual and adaptive behavior levels…

The article defines leadership training and presents data on the impact of University Affiliated Facilities (UAF) programs which provide interdisciplinary advanced clinical training in areas related to improved care for mentally retarded and handicapped children and their families. Two conceptual approaches to UAF leadership training are…

It is difficult to apply benefit cost analysis to human service programs. This paper explains "threshold benefit analysis," the derivation of the minimum dollar value which the benefits must attain in order for their value to equal the intervention costs. The method is applied to a mobility training program. (BS)

This critical analysis of least restrictive environment (LRE) for the developmentally disabled reviews the origins and operationalization of LRE in terms of a continuum of residential, educational, and vocational services. Pitfalls in LRE, especially for severely disabled persons, are enumerated and commitment to the contrasting principle of…

Although several state mental retardation/developmental disabilities agencies use the Minnesota Developmental Programming System Behavioral Scales for statewide planning, evidence exists that this assessment provides more information than is necessary for efficient management decision making. Factor analysis resulted in identifying two factor…

Reliability and validity data are reported for the Motivation Assessment Scale, a 16-item questionnaire designed to identify variables maintaining self-injurious behavior in persons with autism and other developmental disorders. Results indicated that interrater reliability and test-retest reliability among teachers was good and that ratings…

Boatworks, a subsidiary of Stepping Stones Growth Center in Oakland, California, provides work experience to developmentally disabled persons and helps them learn skills useful in private sector jobs. Workers learn job responsibility, quality control, and work safety procedures and are paid according to productivity. (CB)

A comparison of the social activity of eight mothers with developmentally delayed, noncompliant children with that of eight mothers with nondelayed, noncompliant children indicated the latter group's social activity was significantly higher. This suggests that the previously reported depression of mothers of developmentally delayed children may be…

In this description of an unusual family, accounts are given of the later development of two sisters who had suffered severe social and emotional deprivation in infancy. The development of a half brother who was raised elsewhere is recounted, and discrepancies in development are discussed.(RH)

Reviews five previously published and one novel case history of children who suffered extreme deprivation in early childhood. Aspects of cognitive, emotional, and social development are critically appraised, and three issues central to theories about the origins of developmental disorders are addressed.(RH)

Available from: EC 090 265.

Available from: EC 090 265.