Exploring the relationship between courtesy stigma and life satisfaction among caregivers of youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Objective: The current study assessed self-reported self-compassion, courtesy stigma, life satisfaction, and depression among parents of transition-age youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs). This study tests the hypothesis that self-compassion is a mediator between courtesy stigma and parents' psychosocial adjustment. Method: One hundred parents of transition-age youth with IDDs completed a cross-sectional survey assessing courtesy stigma, self-compassion, life satisfaction, and depression. Study information was disseminated via community organizations, and participants self-selected to participate. "PROCESS" macro with 5,000 bootstrapped samples was used to test self-compassion as a mediator between courtesy stigma and parents' life satisfaction (Satisfaction With Life Scale) and depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Short Depression Scale). Results: Self-compassion partially mediated the relationship between courtesy stigma and caregiver depressive symptoms (effect = .28, CI [.16, .45]). Self-compassion did not mediate the relationship between courtesy stigma and satisfaction with life. Implications: Findings suggest self-compassion could be leveraged to help counter the effects of courtesy stigma on parents. Future research should seek to explore potential differences in these relationships according to cultural factors or by diagnostic group. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The Impact of COVID-19 on Individuals With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Clinical and Scientific Priorities.

Presidential Address, 2022-Dismantling Systemic Barriers: Re-Envisioning Equity and Inclusion.

Self stigma in people with intellectual disabilities and courtesy stigma in family carers: a systematic review.

Editorial: Introduction to Special Section on Evidence-Based Practices for Persons With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

The first plenary session of 132nd Annual Meeting of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) reflected its support for basic and applied research to prevent or minimize the effects of conditions causing developmental disabilities, with Dr. Alan Guttmacher (2008), currently the acting director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, discussing the realized and potential benefits of genomics research on health and quality of life. This presentation dealt with an incredibly complex topic with clarity and sensitivity, and it was carefully neutral in tone and content with respect to intellectual and developmental disabilities. Nevertheless, a major implication regarding disabilities in general and developmental disabilities more specifically was quite clear. Current research in genomics, as well as in many other areas, is intended to improve understanding of the fundamental causes of disability to reduce risk, thereby lowering incidence of impairments and minimizing their severity. Should these goals be realized, the proportion of the population with disability would decrease, perhaps dramatically, and in some distant future significant impairments might even be eliminated altogether. As unachievable as that ultimate goal might appear to be, an assumption supporting many of the programs and much of the research agenda in the field of developmental disabilities is that we, as a society and as individuals, would be better off if physical, mental, and cognitive impairments ceased to exist. Yet, prevention encompasses many things and can be viewed from many perspectives, some of which have continued to challenge the universality of this assumption. There is a need for serious and open discussion of the many aspects of prevention within our field (and the disabilities field more generally) that entails explicit consideration of risks and benefits of specific programs and approaches to implementation. Although important distinctions can and should be made among primary prevention (avoiding the occurrence of a causal condition), secondary prevention (avoiding or minimizing the consequences of a causal condition after it occurs), and tertiary prevention (minimizing or improving outcomes after the consequences of a causal condition are evident), this dialogue needs to begin with consideration of the overarching goal of lowering the incidence and prevalence of impairments and reducing disability. In many respects, prevention was embraced long ago as a valued societal benefit, and this has had significant impacts in the case of intellectual and developmental disabilities. Certainly, the history of prevention in our own field has included some policies and actions that had devastating consequences for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and careful and constant vigilance will always be required to ensure that the rights, privileges, and dignity of every individual are respected and preserved. Nevertheless, many other aspects of the past continue to be broadly viewed as enormously beneficial, and several examples seem particularly illustrative. Until the late 19th century, congenital hypothyroidism (cretinism) caused many individuals in western Europe to have intellectual disability. For some alpine regions, it was so common an occurrence that local physicians thought it unremarkable (Merke, 1984). We now know that this condition is caused by dietary iodine deficiency, and this discovery, along with the availability of iodized salt, has virtually eliminated it as a public health concern in industrialized countries. (Nevertheless, congenital hypothyroidism remains one of the most common preventable causes of intellectual impairment in many underdeveloped regions of the world; Jain, Agarwal, Deorari, & Paul, 2008.) Prior to the 1950s, babies born with phenylketonuria (PKU), a relatively rare genetic disorder, were unimpaired at birth but invariably developed severe intellectual disabilities. This was caused by their inability to metabolize phenylalanine, a INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES VOLUME 47, NUMBER 4: 320–322 | AUGUST 2009

ABSTRACTResearch and clinical work demonstrate that adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs; including autistic adults and adults with other IDDs) struggle with key outcomes in adult life, including social relationships, employment, autonomy, and life satisfaction. However, few validated measures exist to measure these outcomes in adults with IDDs. The Relationships, Employment, Autonomy, and Life Satisfaction (REALS) Measures were created using methods developed by the Patient‐Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) to assess these outcomes. Large item pools were generated for the four domains, and, in field testing, 875 adults with IDDs (90% autistic; 18.4% with intellectual disability or a non‐autism IDD) and 911 proxy reporters (caregivers; 79% autistic; 48.3% with intellectual disability or a non‐autism IDD) completed 108 and 74 items, respectively, using response options capturing frequency, level of support needed, and satisfaction. The structure and item content of the REALS Measures were determined through an iterative process using both classical test theory and item response theory analyses. The final versions include 19 self‐report and 14 proxy‐report measures, with a range of 3 to 14 items each. The measures have excellent psychometric properties, high precision, and acceptable respondent burden. Thus, they are applicable for service provision, clinical, and research arenas for autistic adults and adults with other IDDs, though additional testing in IDD is warranted and evidence supporting self‐report use in IDD is more limited.

Diagnostic Manual–Intellectual Disability: A Textbook of Diagnosis of Mental Disorders in Persons With Intellectual Disability, by R. Fletcher, E. Loschen, C. Stavrakaki, and M. First

Characteristics and Needs of People With Intellectual Disability Who Have Higher IQs

Determinants of poor life satisfaction in adolescents with congenital heart disease or early acquired cardiovascular disease: a nationwide observational study

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Standards of Practice and Standards of Professional Performance for Registered Dietitians (Competent, Proficient, and Expert) in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Clean and Healthy Lifestyle Behavior (PHBS Program) for Children with Intellectual Disability

Promoting Self-Determination in Students with Developmental Disabilities

The Alliance for Full Participation (AFP) is a coalition of 14 national organizations organized with the purpose of focusing separate constituencies on long-term initiatives for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. At the current time, AFP is emphasizing employment and real jobs. Current AFP members include the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD), American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR), The Arc, Association of University Centers on Disability (AUCD), Autism Society of America (ASA), Association for Persons in Supported Employment (ASPE), Council on Quality and Leadership (CQL), National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (NACDD), National Association of Direct Support Professionals (NADSP),

Developmental disabilities collectively refer to intellectual disabilities and autistic disorders, and unlike other types of disabilities, the prevalence of disability is very high among young people. Individual Act to Support Developmental Disabilities In 2014, 「Act on Guarantee of Rights and Welfare Support for Persons with Developmental Disabilities」 was enacted. However, interest in the life satisfaction of people with developmental disabilities in daily life is increasing only recently, when the individualism of persons with disabilities has taken root due to the spread of the independent living and social integration paradigm. This study verified the mediating effect of self-esteem in the path that economic and health characteristics of employed people with developmental disabilities affect life satisfaction.
 The research data was analyzed by extracting data from those with developmental disabilities who were employed from among the results of the second wave of the second wave of the 2020 Employment Panel Survey for Persons with Disabilities(PSED) as a sample. Factor analysis was performed using SPSS V26, and correlation, normality analysis, and descriptive statistics for major variables were performed to verify normality necessary for hypothesis verification. Based on this, causal relations and mediating effects were analyzed by hierarchical regression analysis. The validation of the significance of mediating effects was conducted in SPSS Process Macro Ver. 4.1.
 As a result of the analysis, first, it was found that the economic characteristics and health characteristics of the employed people with developmental disabilities had an effect on life satisfaction. Second, among the economic characteristics of persons with developmental disabilities, self-esteem showed a fully mediated effect in whether they were a recipient or not in the path of life satisfaction. Third, in the path that the health characteristics of the developmentally disabled, such as health status and need for help from others, had a positive effect on life satisfaction, self-esteem had a partial mediating effect.
 Based on this, a practical strategy to utilize self-esteem and health status was proposed to improve the life satisfaction of employed people with developmental disabilities. First, paying attention to the fact that the health characteristics of people with developmental disabilities have a stronger effect on life satisfaction than economic characteristics, we proposed a strategy to expand participation in social activities of people with developmental disabilities and a plan to use the ICT platform adopting the 4th industrial revolution technology. In addition, in order to improve the self-esteem of people with developmental disabilities, a method of linking a company employing the disabled and a welfare center for the disabled, and a method of organizing a working group in a form that allows for peer counseling were suggested. In addition, a systematic proposal was made to adjust the activity support training curriculum so that active volunteers who provide activity support services for the severely disabled can be used as a support system for people with developmental disabilities.