Exploring the Flynn effect in mentally retarded adults by using a nonverbal intelligence test for children

Client factors as predictors of restraint and seclusion in people with intellectual disability

BACKGROUND

To gain more insight into the antecedent factors of restraint in institutionalised people with intellectual disability (ID), the role played by several demographic and psychological client variables was investigated.

METHODS

The data of 475 people (age range 12-95 years) who were residents in a Dutch institution for people with ID were collected. The severity of restraint was rated on an ordinal scale.

RESULTS

None of the demographic variables height, weight, age, or length of stay were related to the application of restraint. Significant predictors were the psychological variables: low adaptive functioning, the presence of challenging behaviours, and a relatively high intellectual level. Of the challenging behaviours, specifically behaviours other than actual aggressiveness proved to be predictors of restraint.

CONCLUSIONS

The fact that actual aggressiveness plays a minor role in predicting restraint is a new finding and should be further examined in future research.

The Increase in Colored Progressive Matrices Test Performance in Individuals With Down Syndrome: A Qualitative and Quantitative Review

It is well known that a normal population improves its IQ test scores by about 3 points per decade. This is called the Flynn effect and has been explained in different and sometimes contrasting ways. Few and ambiguous data are available on any Flynn effect in individuals with an atypical development, such as those with intellectual disabilities: some studies report evidence of the Flynn effect, whereas others do not. The main objective of the present study was to analyze the performance of individuals with Down syndrome (DS) compared with a sample of typically developing (TD) children in the Colored Progressive Matrices (CPM) test, which measures abstract reasoning and is commonly used to estimate IQ, to see whether a Flynn effect is present. Our results suggest that the Flynn effect in the DS population depends on the individual’s age.