ABSTRACT
Despite increasing attention to psychiatric disorders in the mentally retarded, suicidal behavior remains an underreported phenomenon in this population, particularly in children and adolescents. This study was aimed at documenting the existence of suicidal behavior among 90 consecutive admissions to a specialty unit for dually diagnosed children and adolescents in a medical school-affiliated children's psychiatric hospital. Archival chart review yielded a total of 19 patients, or 21%, for whom suicidal behavior was a presenting complaint upon admission or during hospitalization. Suicidality was distributed across gender, level of mental retardation, and psychiatric diagnosis. Additional findings of note with regard to family dysfunction and/or abuse history are summarized. Clearly, in this sample, children and adolescents with mental retardation were capable of formulating and engaging in potentially fatal acts. Results of this study suggest that suicidal behavior is an underrecognized, yet significant phenomenon in children and adolescents with mental retardation and psychiatric disorder.
Subject(s)
Intellectual Disability/epidemiology , Suicide, Attempted/statistics & numerical data , Adolescent , Adult , Child , Child Abuse/prevention & control , Child Abuse/psychology , Child Abuse/statistics & numerical data , Cross-Sectional Studies , Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry) , Family/psychology , Female , Humans , Incidence , Intellectual Disability/psychology , Intellectual Disability/rehabilitation , Male , Patient Admission/statistics & numerical data , Rhode Island/epidemiology , Suicide, Attempted/prevention & control , Suicide, Attempted/psychologyABSTRACT
The validity of a social subtyping scheme forwarded by Wing and her colleagues is examined in a sample of 53 autistic individuals. Clinical ratings of subtype (aloof, passive, active-but-odd), IQ estimates, and measures of adaptive functioning and level of autism were obtained. Subjects were individually administered the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) by the principle examiner, who was blind to subtype assignment. The general findings supported the validity of aloof and active-but-odd subtypes as predictors of behavior across language/communication, reciprocal social interaction, and stereotyped behavior/restricted interest domains and suggested that individuals assigned to these respective groups differed in a number of important ways (e.g., level of autism, IQ, adaptive behavior). Partial support for an intermediate, passive subtype was garnered. The clinical utility of social subtypes is discussed as an important implication of this work.
Subject(s)
Autistic Disorder/classification , Social Behavior , Adolescent , Autistic Disorder/diagnosis , Autistic Disorder/psychology , Child , Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/classification , Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/diagnosis , Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/psychology , Education, Special , Female , Humans , Intelligence , Male , Personality Assessment/statistics & numerical data , Psychometrics , Reproducibility of ResultsABSTRACT
Six hundred fourth-graders rated how much they liked to play with each of their classmates and then nominated their three best friends; 296 of the 600 children were assigned sociometric classifications of popular, neglected, average, controversial, or rejected status (the remaining 304 children failed to meet inclusion criteria). Five years later, 267 of the 296 classified children (90.2%) were evaluated on measures of academic performance, social behavior, and psychological adjustment. The number and type of contacts with the juvenile justice system were also determined. In general, children classified as rejected or controversial tended to fare more poorly on indices of long-term adjustment than did children classified as popular, neglected, or average. Results are discussed in terms of the predictive validity of sociometric rating and nomination procedures and their utility in identifying children at risk for later maladjustment.
