Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree MASTER OF EDUCATION in the Department of Educational Psychology of the Faculty of Education at the University of Zululand, 1996. / The aim of this investigation was to examine the life-world of Indian parents' with a Down's syndrome child. Down's syndrome is the most commonly occurring form of mental retardation that is known to be caused by a genetic defect It is also known as Mongolism because of the Eastern (Mongoloid) slant of the eyes or as Trisomy - 21 because it is caused by the presence of an extra (third) chromosome on the twenty-first pair of chromosomes. Although a Down's syndrome child can result from any pregnancy the incidence thereof increases with the age of the mother - the older the mother the higher the risk. One out of every 640 babies born has Down's syndrome. The Down's syndrome child's experience of his impairment was described in terms of his relationship with himself, others, objects and ideas, and God. Meaningful and active acceptance of his impairment by the child seems to be possible if parents unconditionally accept the child and share his experiences by rendering sustained and responsible assistance and support. Parents of Down's syndrome children experience their parenthood in a different way from the parents of normal children for the simple reason that they are parents of children with special needs. Their initial reaction after discovering the child has Down's syndrome is shock and disbelief followed by anger, disappointment, denial and often guilt feelings. In general, parents with disabled children are unable to accept and/or assimilate in a responsible way their unusual experience of parenthood without professional support. Parents need adequate support right from the very birth of a disabled child. For the purpose of the empirical investigation a self-structured questionnaire was utilized. An analysis was done of the questionnaires completed by the parents of Down's syndrome children in the Durban area. The data thus obtained was processed and interpreted by means of descriptive statistics. In conclusion, a summary and findings emanating from the literature study, and the descriptive statistics were presented. Based on these findings, the following recommendations were made: Genetic services of the Department of Health must be made better known and more available to the general public. From the initial diagnosis of a Down's syndrome child support should be rendered to the parents to meet the special needs brought about by a disabled child. Existing information concerning the care and education of Down's syndrome children must be utilised in the compiling of counselling programs for parents.

No description available.

No description available.

The study was undertaken for the following purposes: 1. To determine the present level of physical fitness of a group of mentally retarded girls at Denton State School. 2. To determine the effect of a creative dance program, devised by the author, on the physical fitness level of a group of mentally retarded girls at Denton State School. 3. To determine the feasibility of the inclusion of creative dance in an overall physical education program for mentally retarded girls.

This study was undertaken to investigate the facilitating effects of imitation procedures upon a traditional behavior modification program. A "token economy" was instituted within a workshop setting.

MSc (Med), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand / Mental retardation (MR) is estimated to affect ~2-3% of the general population and may result from genetic causes and/or environmental causes. X-linked mental retardation (XLMR) is a heterogeneous group of disorders with a broad range of phenotypes and can be classified into syndromic XLMR (S-XLMR) and nonsyndromic XLMR (NS-XLMR) types. A number of X-linked genes have been identified that are associated with the different forms of XLMR. In an attempt to refine the diagnostic service to patients with XLMR, the Division of Human Genetics, Molecular Laboratory at the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has investigated a number of associated X-linked genes. The main objective of this project was to investigate three genes, FMR2, XNP and ARX, associated with NS-XLMR and their contribution to XLMR in the South African (SA) population of MR males. Patients from different ethnic groups, referred to the Division of Human Genetics for fragile X MR syndrome that tested negative for the FMR1 expansion mutation were investigated for mutations in these genes. In addition, a cohort of Black institutionalized males was also investigated. The FMR2 expansion mutation responsible for fragile X E syndrome was not identified in 1194 FMR1 expansion negative MR male patients. FMR2 allele distribution analysis showed that a GCC repeat size of 15 was common in the MR cohort, accounting for 42% of alleles identified. From a total of 210 FMR1 expansion negative MR male subjects screened for mutations in a hotspot region (exons 7, 8 and 9) of the XNP gene, none was found to have a mutation in this region. Two patients from a cohort of 868 FMR1 expansion negative MR males were found to have a mutation in the ARX gene – one patient tested positive for the common 24 bp duplication mutation and a second patient appeared to have a deletion in the region amplified. These results indicate that the FMR2, XNP and ARX genes do not contribute significantly to MR in the SA population. As a result of this study, routine DNA testing for the FMR2 expansion, mutation screening in the hotspot region of the XNP gene and screening for the common 24 bp duplication mutation in the ARX gene in FMR1 expansion negative MR male subjects will not be implemented. A retrospective analysis was also done on 1862 probands referred to the Molecular Genetics Diagnostic service from 1992 to 2009 for fragile X MR syndrome testing. The FMR1 full expansion mutation was detected in 6.2% of probands, higher than reported worldwide figures. FMR1 allele distribution analysis in a cohort of 1184 FMR1 expansion negative MR males showed that 29 CGG repeats was the most frequent repeat size observed, accounting for 32.6% of all alleles in the cohort. The analysis of FMR1 alleles in MR males shows a similar distribution between different ethnic groups and compares well with other reported studies. This study reinforces the presence of fragile X MR syndrome in the SA Black population. Molecular investigations were also undertaken on 3 patients clinically suspected to have X-linked -thalassaemia mental retardation syndrome (ATR-X) and extended family members. Mutations were identified in each of the patients – two patients were found to have a novel mutation in the XNP gene and the third patient had a common XNP mutation. As a result, carrier testing and prenatal diagnosis was made possible in these families. A large family positive for the FMR1 expansion causing fragile X A MR syndrome was investigated. As an incidental finding, 2 females were found to be compound heterozygotes for 2 FMR1 alleles. Extended family members were tested and their FMR1 status was determined. Haplotype analysis was used to track the high-risk X chromosome in the family. As a result of this investigation, females at risk for premature ovarian failure and fragile X tremor ataxia syndrome have been identified. The approach to testing genes implicated in NS-XLMR has to be refined to allow for a cheaper and more efficient alternative. The use of newer techniques such as CGH microarray and MLPA has allowed for better detection of mutations. Delineating the causes of MR and their molecular and cellular consequences will assist families but also provide insight into the mechanisms that are required for the normal development of cognitive functions in humans.

This study examined mechanisms by which sibling relationships may buffer the harmful effects of negative peer experiences on the psychological adjustment of children with mental retardation (MR) or learning disabilities (LD). The study broadened existing findings with typically developing children and examined the effects of sibling social competency training on peer experiences and the impact of sibling relationship qualities, including warmth and positivity, supportiveness, conflict, and negativity, on children’s loneliness, internalizing, and delinquent behavior problems. The participants included 100 families with children who were between 8 and 10 years old. The families had a sibling dyad in which the target child had MR (n = 36), an LD (n = 43), or was typically developing (n = 21), while siblings were typically developing. Parents, target children, and siblings completed questionnaires and interviews assessing family and peer relationships. Sibling dyads completed a video-taped interaction. Results indicated that, as predicted, children with an LD or MR experienced significantly lower rates of positive peer experiences and significantly higher rates of negative peer experiences than did typically developing children. They exhibited significantly higher rates of loneliness and internalizing, but not delinquent, behavior problems than typically developing children. There was only partial support for the hypothesized protective effects of siblings on children’s development of adverse peer experiences. In particular, there was an indirect effect of one form of social competency training: social involvement mediated the effect of learning disabilities on adverse peer experiences. As predicted by the buffering hypothesis, emotional supportiveness by siblings moderated the impact of negative peer experiences on children’s internalizing and delinquent behavior problems. In addition, negativity within the sibling relationship moderated the effect of negative peer experiences on children’s internalizing problems while sibling conflict moderated the effect of positive peer experiences on loneliness. There were no significant effects for sibling warmth and positivity. Findings that siblings of children with MR or an LD can buffer some of the harmful effects of adverse peer experiences on psychological well being in specific instances suggest that including siblings in interventions aimed at improving peer experiences and psychological functioning may be relevant under certain circumstances.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of sexuality education program on eight 3-6th graders with mental retardation. A qualitative and quantitative research method was employed to collect data. The sexual knowledge pretest, posttest and retaining-test results were analyzed by the Wilcoxon Sign-Rank Test. In addition, classroom observation, behavior observation as well as teaching journal were used to determine the changes of sexual-related behaviors and interactions of those students. The results demonstrated that the sexuality education program significantly improved the sexual knowledge of students with mental retardation. However, the application of sexual harassment prevention skills was varied. Suggestions and challenges of sexuality education for students with mental retardation were discussed.

No description available.

The study which was presented in this thesis was an attempt by the administrators at a state institution for the mentally retarded to determine the effects of providing staff with performance feedback in order to increase the staff's implementation of assigned duties, which were defined as implementing the training programs and writing of weekly progress notes relative to the training objectives for assigned residents. During the course of the study additional interventions were introduced which compounded or appeared to intensify the effects of the pro-vision of performance feedback to the staff. Prior to the discussion of the afore mentioned study, the thesis presents a brief historical view of the development of institutions for the mentally retarded in the U. S.