Background: Deinstitutionalisation refers to the transition of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities from large institutions to smaller homes in the community. The purpose of this study was to explore how family members of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities perceived their loved ones' community…

The assessment of cognitive ability in students with the most severe disabilities presents a challenge to the clinicians who are charged with this task. This article is the second of a two-part series that summarizes what is currently known about effective assessment of the cognitive ability of students with significant impairments in order to…

The principle of age-appropriateness is widespread throughout government policy and nongovernment practice guidelines, but the exact meaning of the term is rarely defined. It is commonly assumed to mean activities and approaches commensurate with an individual's chronological age. Dress, furnishing, object selection, and the style of interactions,…

Despite more than 40 years of legislation to improve the outcomes of children and youth with disabilities and those growing up in poverty, vast numbers of adults with severe disabilities are unemployed or underemployed and living in poverty. This article suggests that one of the factors maintaining the problem is our failure to acknowledge the…

Although much has been written about the normalization and social inclusion of persons with developmental disabilities over the past 50 years, a small subset of this population has remained largely overlooked--individuals who are quadriplegic, non-verbal and who also have additional disabilities, including cognitive impairment. The present project…

This article presents the author's response to "Excessive Positivism in Person-Centered Planning," by Steve Holburn and Christine D. Cea. The author begins by complementing Holburn and Cea on their courage to voice concerns that perhaps may not appear to be politically correct or perhaps too bold to express in the context of a journal like…

This paper comments on three preceding papers in the same publication on the general topic of self-determination for adults with severe disabilities. Self-determination is discussed as a movement requiring major changes in culture, values, and support in the general direction of partnership and inclusion, including a more accessible approach to…

This paper comments on three preceding papers in the same publication on the general topic of self-determination for adults with severe disabilities. The author views them as competing ideologies and puts forth guidelines for evaluating any such set. The difficulty of effectively assessing the preferences of individuals with severe disabilities is…

This article reviews how the term "self-determination" has been defined and conceptualized, examines misperceptions of the term that may have contributed to the exclusion of people with severe disabilities, and seeks to find common ground to move forward to promote self-determination for people with severe disabilities. (Author/PB)

This paper comments on three preceding papers in the same publication on the general topic of self-determination for adults with severe disabilities. It is concluded that self-determination is based on community relationships more than individual decisions, and that individuals should be valued regardless of whether or not they know what they…

This article presents guidelines for providing individuals with severe disabilities with a wide range of personal choices. It provides a rationale for teaching all individuals to participate in meaningful choice-making; describes basic types of choices; and suggests ways to generalize choice-making skills across settings, times, and people. (DB)

This paper comments on three preceding papers in the same publication on the general topic of self-determination for adults with severe disabilities. The meanings of self-determination discussed are explored as separate social and psychological components of the construct, which leads to a discussion of how the construct obliges caregivers to…

This final report describes the Systematic Integrated Preschool Education Model (SIPE) project, which established classrooms to demonstrate an inclusion model for serving preschool children with severe disabilities. A total of 33 preschool children with identified developmental disabilities and their families in three Virginia school districts…

This paper presents five systematic phases for bringing about successful regular education inclusion of students with severe disabilities. Phases include develop networks within the community, assess school and community resources, review strategies for integration, install strategies that lead to integration, and develop a system of feedback and…

A program was developed to offer meal-related choices to adults with severe/profound mental retardation. Results indicated that the program, which included a choice-making skill assessment and teaching component along with a staff training and management component, effectively increased choice opportunities offered as well as actual choices made…