Essays on Mental Retardation

It is always difficult to watch movies about impaired people, let alone see them in real life. However, it is the real life that we must accept. Cinema is an excellent field and sphere to analyze the potential symptoms of characters playing the role of an impaired man or woman. Forrest Gump is an excellent example of the director’s and actor’s mastery at showing the people what a real psychopathology is. Watching Forrest Gump one always thinks of the protagonist as mentally retarded (or rather suffering from mental retardation - a congenital form of an intellectual disability ...

There are various guidelines in the United States of America that decide how tests may be used in legal cases. The three main systems are statutory, case law, and the one that corresponds to the American Psychological Association. Even though these three have the same principles and main points, they differ on their approach and the stipulations that they set for practitioners. The more legal aspects of these procedures respond to either statute or case law. Mental health standards vary from state to state, including the competency to be applicable for capital punishment. There are federal statutes that must ...

Trisomy

Chromosomes are marvelous things! They carry in their genes the entire genetic code required to build a human being. Comprised of nucleic acid (DNA) and proteins, twenty-three pairs of chromosomes located in the cell nucleus are needed for the normal development of a human embryo. However, sometimes things go wrong. This paper will discuss some of the consequences of faulty chromosome separation during fertilization, resulting in Trisomy. Trisomy is a chromosomal condition which occurs when three chromosomes, instead of the normal two are produced during cell division. This happens due to the failure of human chromosome pairs to separate ...

Introduction

In our everyday life, we experience stress at every corner. Instances like losing a loved one, losing a job or even divorce can make an individual feel sad, lonely, scared, nervous or anxious. It is our normal response to such stimuli, and they are usually accompanied by physiological changes in our body systems. According to the diagnostic and statistical manual (DSM) of mental disorders, mental illness have been categorized into several groups. DSM-IV used axes to categorize mental disorders into five axes. The first axis included all the psychological diagnostic categories except for the mental retardation and personality disorder. ...

During each historical epoch was only her peculiar attitude towards people with disabilities and to people something different from the majority. Everything depended on how disability is understood in society, as explained by its appearance and physical manifestations in life she had. Depending on the understanding also varied and the resources that are available to this category of citizens, including access to quality education. Education has always been considered the key to the development of society. Especially important is education for children with disabilities, because it is just a tool that helps these children to become independent and to ...

Lis Rodriguez

Lab 1 ASA College Abstract Patau’s syndrome is a rare genetic disorder that involves trisomy 13. The condition is characterised by either an extra copy of the autosomal chromosome number 13 or a translocation to chromosome 13 from another chromosome. There are severe symptoms observed in the unborn and newborn children having this defect. Polydactyly, cleft lips, physical retardation, mental retardation, heart defects are few of the many symptoms. The disease can be diagnosed during gestation via screening methods followed by several analytical procedures like FISH, karyotyping and microarray on samples of blood and serum from the pregnant ...

Summary of the article

This article is about a study that was conducted to check the abnormal short latency synaptic plasticity in the motor cortex of subjects with Becker muscle dystrophy (BMD). Before the research could take place, the author indicates that the assessment of the cortical function especially with patients with BMD has brought about contradicting results. The researchers used the repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) so as to explore the excitability of the motor cortex. Therefore, the participants of the study were thirteen patients suffering from Becker Muscle dystrophy. Out of the thirteen patients, six of them are stated to have ...

Abstract

In the following case-study, Joshua is a newborn infant presented by his parents Samuel and Rachel to the pediatric outpatient unit of Robertsbridge, Sussex for screening and medical advice for sporadic vomiting at the time of breast feeding and seizure-like episodes. Samuel and Racheal also report sweet odor in the urine and loss of weight. Blood tests demonstrated increased concentrations of leucine and isoleucine. Genetic testing on the skin biopsies reveal mutation at Exon 6, c.659C>T of the of BCKDHA gene with a protein level p. A220V and Joshua exhibits about 1.5 % lesser than normal deficiency in the ...

Dr. Bruce Frumkin presents a comprehensive overview of the strengths and weaknesses of intellectual assessment tools and offers a practical guide for forensic clinicians and attorneys faced with criminal cases involving mental retardation claims. Such a defense has implications for rulings regarding competency to stand trial and the extent to which a defendant can be found criminally responsible for an offense.

For starters, it is important to understand the meaning of “intelligence” and the way many assessment tools, such as IQ tests (i.e., WAIS-III, WIAS-III, MMPI-2, etc.) or adaptive behavior testing, can impact the findings of a clinician. Frumkin explores the definition of ...

Furman v. Georgia

In the above case, the U.S. Supreme Court found for the first time that the death penalty in this case was unconstitutional. The petitioner William Henry Furman was committing a burglary in a home when his weapon accidentally killed a resident therein. Georgia court convicted Furman for murder and awarded death sentence. Along with this, two other cases Jackson v Georgia and Branch v Texas that awarded death sentence for rape were decided by the Supreme Court on the question whether death sentence in these cases constituted cruel and unusual punishment violating Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the ...

Background information

Ted Nugent was born in December 1948 in Detroit, Michigan. He was able to earn the world’s fame and fortune as the lead guitarist before he established his own solo career. Nut Nugent is renowned for songs such as Wango Tango, Cat Scratch Fever, and Stranglehold among others in his 1970’s hit songs. He was raised in Detroit by his father and mother, Warren Henry Nugent and Marion Dorothy respectively. Ted Nugent’s father was an army sergeant; therefore, he was raised under strict and stern household. As a teenager, Ted Nugent moved to Palatine, Illinois. Ted Nugent ...

What is Down syndrome?

Down syndrome also known as Trisomy 21 is a chromosomal condition where a person possesses extra genetic material that is: an extra complete or fractional duplicate of chromosome 21. It is one of the most common birth defects. It affects 1 in 800 to 1 in 1000 live born infants. Close to half of all affected children develop heart defects right from birth (Goldstein 71).

Causes

Down syndrome is typically caused by non-disjunction; when one of the three types of abnormal cell division involving chromosome 21 occurs. Non-disjunction occurs when a pair of chromosomes fails to detach during sperm or egg formation. After ...

Human resource management is more than just procuring health plans and cutting paychecks. Strategic human resource management looks at the organization as a whole to identify what sets it apart, and how it can be made better. One of the tools used to do this is the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis. This looks at the organization, where it needs to improve, what should stay the same and the steps necessary to make improvements without affecting what makes the organization a success.

1. Strategic human resource management focuses on the larger, organizational picture and its strategic goals to address ...

Developmental psychology primarily focuses on childhood development since it is the period within which a lot of changes take place. This field focuses on the interplay of nature and nurture and their influence on individual development; with nature concerning matters of genetic inheritance and maturation whereas nurture focuses on the impact of our environment and experience. As mentioned earlier developmental psychology focuses on a number of areas including language development. Language refers to the expression of human communication through which knowledge, belief and behavior can be expressed using a system of symbols and rules. Language development begins quite early in life ...

According to , Intellectual disabilities, which were once referred to as mental retardation, are characterized by “below average intelligence or mental ability and a lack of skills necessary for day-to-day living. People with intellectual disabilities can and do learn new skills, from mild to profound”. The cause of these disabilities range from; genetic conditions like, Down’s syndrome and fragile X syndrome; problems during pregnancy, such as alcohol or drugs, malnutrition, certain infections etc; problems during childbirth like low oxygen tension; and illness like meningitis, whooping cough, measles or injuries like head injury, near-drowning, extreme malnutrition etc. Of the above ...

The time delay is used in teaching after the teacher has given a task direction of the skill. It is allowed to pass before a prompt is offered with the major aim that the student will accomplish the task independently without any intervention from the teacher. This is used mainly in helping students with mild mental retardation and learning disabilities having difficulties in reading without the intervention of the teacher. This is because if an intervention is not made then there is the chance that the student will not have the ability to accomplish the task that they have been handed ...

- What theory or theories of crime best justifies or justify the imposition of capital punishment There are several legal theories that justify capital punishment in many jurisdictions. In such a punishment, the state puts one to death as a punishment for the crimes they may have committed. Legally, only capital offenses can attract capital punishments. The death sentence has always elucidated various reactions from the public, with some opposing it, and others support it. For instance, as of 2014, only 58 nations in the world actively practiced this punishment. 98 countries have so far abolished the punishment because it ...

Intellectual Disability/Mental Retardation

Intellectual disability is a generalized disorder that often appears before the onset of adulthood. This disorder is characterized impaired cognitive functioning as well as deficits that occur in either one or two adaptive behaviors. The condition was previously known as mental retardation, although the term was deemed disparaging and politically incorrect, hence the change into the more sensitive name. People with intellectual disability lack the skills that are necessary for daily life activities. However, these people can learn, and do actually learn new skills, although this is achieved at a slower rate compared to people without the disability. This is conceptualized ...

Introduction

The immunological disorders in an individual can occur due to three different reasons. This includes immunological diseases in an immunocompromised individual, or “autoimmune diseases”, or finally an immunological hypersensitivity that can lead to tissue damage.

Immunodeficiency diseases

Immunodeficiency diseases occur due to malfunctioning of the organs or cells in an individual. They are further classified as primary immunodeficiency (PID) and secondary immunodeficiency (SID).

Primary immunodeficiency disease

They occur when there is a direct defect in the immune system. They are further classified into eight groups depending upon the site of the defect. Combined T and B deficiencies. Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) is an excellent ...

Definition

Neurodevelopmental disorders are defined as impairments of the development and growth of the central nervous system or the brain (Reynolds and Goldstein, 1999 p.3). Neurodevelopmental disorders affect the brain’s function that deals with memory, the learning ability and emotions, and they become more intense as the individual grows (Reynolds and Goldstein, 1999 p. 4-8). Autism is considered a neurodevelopmental disorder distinguished by a range of impairments, including problems with communication (verbal and non-verbal) and any social interaction as well as behavioral problems (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Individuals with autism find it difficult to process information, mainly due to changes in ...

Language is an important tool of communication. It is through language that we are able to determine the regions and geographic areas that various people are from. One of the important questions that we often forget to ask is how we are able to learn a language. This paper looks at the features, properties, and/or experiences in the world and/or with people allow for language learning in infants. This paper makes the argument that language learning in infants is shaped by three important factors. These include the social interaction of the infant, the cognitive ability of the infant, and the ...

Introduction

Teratogen is broadly defined as an environmental agent capable of causing abnormal prenatal variation in form or function. In other words, it can be any environmental factor that can produce a permanent abnormality in structure or function of an embryo or fetus or restriction of growth of an infant (Gilbert-Barness, 2010). In prenatal life, exposure to teratogens may even lead to death of the embryo or fetus. It is estimated that approximately 15% of all congenital structural abnormalities observed in a child are due to exposure to some kind of teratogens during the prenatal life (Brent, 2001). A larger number of ...

- What are the clinical differences between seizures and epilepsy? Seizure is characterized by hyperexcitation of brain neurons which results into spontaneous sensory interruptions, motor activity, and at times loss of consciousness. Epilepsy on its part is a neurologic disorder characterized by recurrent seizures. - Being a lifelong neurological condition, does epilepsy requires palliative or comfort care? Epilepsy is not curable but can easily be managed. Being a lifelong condition, it requires comfort care that improves the quality of life. - What are the comorbid conditions associated with epilepsy? The majority of patients with epilepsy also suffer ...

- Based on what the clinician has learned during the intake, what are some of the symptoms a clinician should look for, or ask about, when working with this client during the initial sessions? Explain each symptom. Some of the symptoms that the clinician should ask about from the client are: depression, anxiety, and panic . This would be of great importance so as the clinician can come to a conclusion on what disorder Meredith faces. - What other historical information might a counselor want to ask about? One may ask the client whether there is any member of their ...

The most publicized and sensational violent crimes that have been committed recently, such as the attack on the children of Newtown, Connecticut and the shootings at the Batman movie screening in Aurora, Colorado, have been committed by persons who appear to be mentally ill and perhaps additionally suffering from drug addition. The significant overlap between mental illness, drug addiction, and violence is well documented and thus the criminal justice system has put resources behind trying to solve this problem with programs such as drug and mental health courts (Rossman, 2012). In contrast, persons with mental retardation, also known by ...

- When assessing a patient, one must use the DSM-IV, or Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, to determine what psychological disorder one has (Feldman, p. 455). The DSM-IV uses five axes of information in assessing patients. In Axis I, there is contained all the diagnoses of every aspect of a psychological disorder except mental retardation and the personality disorders. These kinds of disorders include anxiety disorders, ADHD, bipolar disorders, depression, schizophrenia, anorexia, bulimia and more. In Axis II, the DSM-IV covers information related to personality disorders and mental retardation. These personality disorders include schizoid, borderline, antisocial, narcissistic, avoidant, obsessive-compulsive, ...

The movie “ Flowers for Algernon” was released in February 2000. The movie is based on a short written by Charlie Gordon who acts as the main character. Charlie is 32 years old who has an IQ of 68. In the movie, Charlie who is the main character and the main narrator is the subject of the movie through his mental retardation and the urge to improve his mental status. He attends special classes that are aimed at improving his reading and writing skills to make him smarter. To help him achieve this feat, teacher Alice Kinnian offers her night ...

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Visually Impaired

A visual impaired individual is one who looses the function of vision, which occurs when a part of the eye or the brain that processes images becomes diseased or damaged. Visual impairment is a situation where a person has sight problem that cannot be rectified by the use of glasses or contact lenses. The human eye has an iris that regulates the amount of light passing through the pupil. It also has a cornea that focuses light, and a retina that changes the light signals into nerve signals that form an image when sent to the brain. When the retina or the optic nerve ...

Introduction

On the quiet morning of August 6, 1945, the United States shocked the world by dropping an atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima, Japan. Hiroshima was a main industrial city with that had a projected population that was somewhere around 400,000 individuals. On a bright day, A B-29 bomber was loaded with the Atomic Bomb and shipped out of the air base at 2:45 a.m. local time and the next thing people knew, an entire city went up in smoke at exactly 8:15 a.m. This essay will examine the atomic bomb and the devastating effect it had on the Japanese ...

The use of punishment in the modification of behavior has been used for a long time. However, it has attracted different views with some people being against the use of punishment especially in the management of self-injurious behavior due to the severe injuries associated with the practice. This essay will discuss the use of self-injurious behavior inhibiting system in the management of self-injurious behavior and the ethical issues surrounding the process.

Introduction

Punishment is defined as a change in the environmental change depending on behavior, which results to a reduction in responding over time (Lerman & Vorndran, 2002). Other ways of reducing the response ...

- List one contribution and one criticism of cognitive theories of development. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development has been recognized for its contribution in developing scientific study in psychology. Its contribution is significant in linking cognitive changes with the aggregate neural and visceral changes in the body with the resulting emergence of the psychophysiological development approach in the study of psychology. However, the theory is also criticized owing to its lack of scientific approach to its theory development involving the issues on using small samples for its tests and the absence of using statistical figure analysis in ...

Worldwide mental retardation (MR) is one of the most common conditions affecting 1 to 3% of the general population. Clinically the symptoms differ from one individual to the other as it depends on the severity of the condition (Mental Retardation, 2010; Intellectual Disability (Mental Retardation), 2011; Intellectual disability, 2013). However, few common symptoms associated with MR are as follows: - The intellectual developing milestones are not meet as expected. - Common features shown by the individuals with MR includes unable to do the routine activities independently, impetuous, passive, causing injury to self, inconvincible, rude behavior, frustrated and ...

The death penalty is a situation where an individual arraigned in a court of law for a certain crime is sentenced to death. Due to the seriousness of this sentence, it is apparent that the evidence provided in court for such cases must be beyond reasonable doubt. It is for this reason that almost all the cases which end with a death sentence are referred to the Supreme Court for appeals. This essay looks at the case of Atkins v Virginia (2002). It will give the details of the case and the sentence thereon. The essay seeks to assert the fact that capital ...

HLTH2105 – HEALTH: A Psychological Perspective

This paper is based on The Black balloon movie (2008), an award winning film that features how autism affects one military family. From a medical point of view, autism is a development disorder that affects behavioural patterns of the affected person. The dominant characters in the movie are Charlie Mollison who suffers from Autism and Attention Deficit Disorder, Thomas Mollison – youngest brother to Charlie, Jackie – Thomas’ classmate who later became his girlfriend. Maggie Mollison and Simon Mollison are the parents of the two brothers. The character of Jackie will be used to show how physical and emotional support can help families ...

Dexter Morgan

Dexter Morgan is the American serial killer who works during the day for the Miami Metro Homicide as a blood splatter analysis; while, at night, he searches for the perpetrators of the crimes and kills them. Dexter lives in two separate lives as he loves his job in Miami as the blood spatter analyst as each day he goes to different crime scenes. He is also able to elucidate how different victims died by looking at the blood from the scene of the crime. In the beginning, of the series Dexter is married to a lady called Rita and they both ...

This is a quantitative study using descriptive statistics on principals’ perceptions of the role of speech pathologists in elementary schools. The project will involve interviews with principals from traditional public schools. The researcher will transcribe the interviews and use descriptive statistics to look for common strands in the principals’ perceptions. The study will be organized around a description of the speech pathologist’s role, personal attributes needed for the job of the principal and the speech language pathologist, and support given to principals by the special education department.

Background

A study by Sanger, Hux, and Griess in 1995 examined educators’ opinions of ...

Mental retardation

The image selected shows children suffering from mental retardation. The children however are all beaming and are happy despite the condition that life has dealt them. The condition of having an intelligence quotient of than 70 is clinically regarded as mental retardation. The fact us that mental retardation is not a disease in the strict sense of the word. Mental retardation is a condition that leaves the victim struggling to master their cognitive abilities. However, many individuals around the world are able to fight it to try and make themselves better. Mental retardation has been a huge challenge to society because the ...

How do current research protocols prevent human rights violations, such as what happened with the Willowbrook Study?

The Hepatitis study which was conducted at the Willowbrook State School for Children with Mental Retardation is probably one of the worst ethical research issues that diverted the research communities’ attention towards the ethicality of the studies being conducted during that time. Children with mental retardation and other types of mental disorders were deliberately exposed to the infectious Hepatitis virus and were then used as subjects for a study. With the current standards in research, studies that are somewhat unethical will be limited and denied. In schools and other academic institutions located in specific states in the U.S. and some ...

Abstract

The intent of this paper is to canvass some of the various teratogens that often affect the fetus. The paper also seeks to describe some of the common effects of teratogens. It is noteworthy that an appreciable amount of effort has been put in place to unravel the variant types of teratogens. Until present a superfluity of teratogens have been discovered with more being discovered every passing day. Teratogens affect an unborn child in the prenatal development stage in a varied number of ways. Though some of the effects are illustrious at birth, most of the teratogenic complications only become eminent ...

This paper provides an insight on reactive attachment disorder (RAD) that is commonly experienced in children. Symptoms relating to this condition are described in relation to the two types of RAD. In addition, the paper covers the diagnosis and subsequent treatment of the condition. Details regarding epidemiology of RAD are discussed. Consequently, information is provided on how to distinguish RAD from other disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which may have certain similarities to RAD.

Keywords: Reactive attachment disorder, care-giver.

Introduction

Reactive attachment disorder is commonly referred to as RAD. According to Elzouki et al. (2011), reactive attachment disorder ...

Engaging Clients and other Systems in GSW Practice Agency Setting

North Suffolk Mental Health Association provides mental health services to underserved communities in East Boston, Chelsea, Withrop, and Revere, Massachusetts. Among the primary mission objectives of the Agency is to provide people with institutional care, support community-based services in addition to helping people to achieve independence and fullness of life through the provision of a wide variety of community-based, person-centered treatment. North Suffolk Mental Health Association was founded in 1959 and has expanded into one of the leading and largest providers of mental health services in the State (North ...

Imagine having a 50% chance of congenital heart disease; of being infertile and unable to have children. Think about having a statistically greater chance of acquiring a plethora of conditions, including epilepsy, leukemia and hearing loss. These are the everyday conditions of a select group of people who have been born with Down's Syndrome. This genetic condition is currently the most recognizable type of mental disability known to man, and is present in millions of individuals throughout the world. In this presentation, we will examine the symptoms of Down's syndrome, as well as the research into its management and treatment.

Opitz, in the ...

Intelligence and Adaptive Behavior

According to American Association of Mental Retardation, intelligence is the general mental capability (2002). Mental capability is the ability of an individual to plan, solve problems, comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly, and learn from experience. From a teacher of students with intellectual disability (MR) perspective, intelligence is the ability to figure out things by pulling together reasoning, experience, and observation (Dage, 2010). Normally, intelligence is measured using Intelligence Quotient (IQ). Standardized tests, prepared by professionals, are used to measure IQ. An IQ score of 70 or below indicates present of intellectual disability in an individual. Intelligence cannot be taught in ...

Educating Special Needs Students

Intellectual disability is a disability, which mostly originates before the age of eighteen years but may appear at any age. Intellectual disability is characterized by significant limitation in intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior necessary for everyday social and practical skills (Carlson, 2009). It occurs due to developmental defects before birth or brain injuries during or after birth. Intellectual disability comprises mental retardation, minor intellectual deficits, specific learning disability, brain injuries, and neurodegenerative diseases. Intellectual disabilities impair learner’s conceptual, social, and practical skills. These skills are fundamental for the learning process to take place effectively. For instance, mental retardation ...

Description of Down syndrome

Down’s syndrome is a genetic disorder that is characterized by mental retardation mostly caused by trisomy 21 (three sets of chromosomes instead of a pair) which is present in 95% of persons with Down syndrome. A combination of normal diploid and trisomy 21 cell known as mosaicism occurs in 2% while 3% have a Robertsonian translocation whereby all or part of an extra chromosome 21 is joined to another chromosome. Majority of the chromosome-21 translocations occur sporadically but some are inherited from a parent with the parent with the defective chromosome. The occurrence of trisomy 21 is due to a meiotic error in ...

Introduction

It is common knowledge that there are numerous internal and external factors, which can influence in a negative way development of a fetus. Although it may seem that the future child is well protected, it is not exactly so. The fetus of the pregnant woman can be easily damaged by a variety of teratogenic agents, environment and the surrounding of the future mother. One of the most urgent questions of our time is reaction of the fetus on maternal cigarette and alcohol exposure. Today a lot of prominent researchers all over the world are examining negative influence of cigarette and alcohol abuse ...