Background: People with intellectual disabilities are more likely than people in the general population to experience life events associated with an increased risk of mental health problems. However, there has been little research in Japan on the prevalence of mental health problems in adults with intellectual disability (ID) or on associated…

Background: Parenting behaviours influence many domains of child development, and recent work has demonstrated the specific effects of parenting on the development of executive function (EF) abilities. The relationship between parent-child interaction patterns and EF has been examined in typically developing (TD) children but has not yet been…

Background: Little is known about how individuals with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and their families use technology in daily life and what skills individuals with FXS can perform when using mobile technologies. Methods: Using a mixed-methods design, including an online survey of parents (n = 198) and a skills assessment of individuals with FXS (n =…

Background: Prematurity has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of intellectual disability (ID). Method: The aim was to establish whether the prevalence of ID, defined as significant limitations in both intellectual (intelligence quotient below 70) and adaptive functioning among moderately preterm (MP; 32[superscript + 0]-33…

Background: Virtually nothing is known about potential differences in the types of depression symptoms reported by adults with mild intellectual disability (ID) on self-reported questionnaires as compared with the types of symptoms reported by caregivers on informant questionnaires. Moreover, little is known about how the presentation of…

Background: Children with intellectual disability (ID) are at risk for maladaptive development of social relatedness. Controversy exists whether Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) takes precedence over disordered attachment for describing maladaptive social behaviour. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of disordered attachment…

Background: The Wellbeing in Special Education Questionnaire was developed to assess subjective wellbeing in young persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) as this perspective is rarely included in research. The present study explored how ID/DD and gender are related to self-reported wellbeing among adolescents. Method:…

Background: Little research exists on suspension of students with autism or intellectual disabilities. We examined suspension rates of students with autism or intellectual disability in Maryland from 2004 to 2015 to understand whether race and disability status predicted the odds of being suspended. Method: We used school enrollment data and…

Background: Successful navigation is crucial to everyday life. Individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) have impaired spatial abilities. This includes a deficit in spatial navigation abilities such as learning the route from A to B. To-date, to determine whether participants attend to landmarks when learning a route, landmark recall tasks have been…

Background: Children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) often have deficits in social cognition and social skills that contribute to poor adaptive functioning. These deficits may be of relevance to the later occurrence of serious psychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia. Yet, there are no evidence-based interventions to improve…

Background: A number of neurogenetic syndromes have a high association with special educational needs including fragile X syndrome (FXS), Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), Williams syndrome (WS) and Velo-Cardio-Facial syndrome (VCFS). There is a paucity of research on educational provision for children affected by these syndromes. Method: Parents…

Background: Conclusive evidence supports the importance of fundamental movement skills (FMS) proficiency in promoting physical activity and countering obesity. In children with Down Syndrome (DS), FMS development is delayed, which has been suggested to be associated with balance deficits. This study therefore examined the relationship between FMS…

Background: Research examining the quality of life (QoL) of children with severe developmental disabilities (SDD) is limited. The present study examines parent perceptions of child QoL in children with SDD compared with typically developing (TD) children and then examines predictors of QoL for the SDD group. Method: Parents of 246 children with…

Background: Williams syndrome (WS) phenotype is described as unique and intriguing. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between speech-language abilities, general cognitive functioning and behavioural problems in individuals with WS, considering age effects and speech-language characteristics of WS sub-groups. Methods: The…

Background: Sexual development plays a vital part in young people's emotional adjustment. Method: This study compared the sexual understanding of 30 adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities (ID) and 30 non-disabled adolescents, along with their reports of where they obtained sexual information, and the nature of their social networks…