This article examines everyday choices made by 8,892 adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and support-related choices made by 6,179 adults with IDD receiving services from 19 state developmental disabilities program agencies that participated in the 2008-2009 National Core Indicators Project. Controlling for physical and…

Data on the mean and median age of first admissions to residential facilities for mentally retarded people 1953-1978, and on the percentage of all first admissions entering residential facilities between ages 0-19, reveals a trend toward older first admissions beginning with 1970. (Author/CL)

Data summaries from 100 years of formal surveys of population and administrative characteristics of public residential facilities for mentally retarded people in the areas of total population, average number of residents per institution, annual per capital cost of care, resident movement, and resident to staff ratios are presented to show trends.…

We examined the frequency and stability of family contact with long-term institutional residents during a major deinstitutionalization project. Movers relocated to community accommodation between Assessments 1 (baseline) and 2. Stayers remained institutionalized. We investigated family contact longitudinally over four annual assessments. There was…

Data gathered on 401 school-age children (part of a nationally representative sample of individuals living in residential facilities for mentally retarded persons) found that at the same time the General Accounting Office study was conducted, substantial numbers were not in school programs and eight percent were in no day programs whatsoever.…

The total population of individuals with mental retardation/developmental disabilities in state institutions has steadily decreased since 1967 along with the number of operating state institutions. Projections indicate that decreases will continue. A graph summarizes total state institution closures between 1960 and 1995, and a table lists…

This paper reviews 27 studies of parental attitudes on the deinstitutionalization of a family member with disabilities. Studies of existing institutional placements found high levels of satisfaction and opposition to deinstitutionalization, whereas studies of community placements found high levels of satisfaction with community placements and…

This study provides longitudinal analysis of day program and work activities of 61 individuals leaving Minnesota state institutions and a comparison group of 71 people remaining institutionalized. Only 13% of movers experienced integrated employment. As a group, the people who remained institutionalized actually earned more money. (Author/CR)

A review of 33 studies of residential service outcomes found that almost all of the studies found statistically significant increases in overall adaptive behavior scores associated with deinstitutionalization of individuals with mental retardation. Three studies reported statistically significant improvements in challenging behavior associated…

The report summarizes 27 research studies which examined the attitudes and perspectives of parents of currently or formerly institutionalized people with mental retardation concerning movement from institutional to community placements. Several trends were evident. Parents whose offspring were living in institutions at the time of the survey were…

A national sample of 370 older persons with mental retardation in 235 facilities (foster care, small group homes, large private facilities, and state-operated facilities) was surveyed. Information is presented on resident characteristics, day program participation, services received, and differences in programs and services by facility type. The…

This introductory article discusses major Australian deinstitutionalization initiatives and presents data on trends in institutional living in Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. All three countries continue to witness a fall in the institutional population of people with intellectual disability and an increase in community…

An examination of expenditures, staffing, and outcomes for 116 adults with severe mental retardation who moved from state institutions in Minnesota to community living settings and a comparison group of 71 persons who remained institutionalized, found community residences were less costly, had more favorable staffing, and better outcomes.…

This report presents statistics on residential facilities for the mentally retarded and on the residents themselves, derived from the Institutional Population Component of the 1987 National Medical Expenditure Survey (NMES). Part 1 presents an overview of the NMES and discusses previous efforts to survey persons residing in mental retardation…