Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Cognitive Disorders
Chapter 13
Developmental Disorders
Diagnosed first in infancy, childhood, or adolescence
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Learning disorders
Autism
Mental retardation
Nature of ADHD
Central features Inattention, overactivity, and impulsivity
Associated with behavioral, cognitive, social, and academic
problems
Prevalence
Occurs in 4%-12% of children who are 6 to 12 years of age
Symptoms are usually present around age 3 or 4
68% of children with ADHD have problems as adults
Gender Differences
Boys outnumber girls 4 to 1
Cultural Factors
Probability of ADHD diagnosis is greatest in the United States
Genetic Contributions
ADHD runs in families
Familial ADHD may involve deficits on chromosome 20
Stimulant Medications
Reduce the core symptoms of ADHD in 70% of cases
Examples include Ritalin, Dexedrine
Effects of Medications
Improve compliance and decrease negative behaviors in many
children
Beneficial effects are not lasting following drug discontinuation
Negative side effects include insomnia, drowsiness, and irritability
Behavioral Treatment
Involve reinforcement programs
Aim to increase appropriate behaviors and decrease inappropriate
behaviors
May also involve parent training
Learning Disorders
Autistic Disorder
Autism
Significant impairment in social interactions and communication
Restricted patterns of behavior, interest, and activities
Historical Views
Bad parenting
Unusual speech patterns
Lack of self-awareness
Echolalia
Mild MR
Includes persons with an IQ score between 50 or 55 and 70
Moderate MR
Includes persons in the IQ range of 35-40 to 50-55
Severe MR
Includes people with IQs ranging from 20-25 up to 35-40
Profound MR
Includes people with IQ scores below 20-25
Prevalence
About 1% to 3% of the general population
90% of MR persons are labeled with mild mental retardation
Gender Differences
MR occurs more often in males, male-to-female ratio of about 1.6:1
Course of MR
Tends to be chronic, but prognosis varies greatly from person to
person
Genetic Research
MR involves multiple genes, and at times single genes
Cultural-Familial Retardation
Believed to cause about 75% of MR cases and is the least
understood
Associated with mild levels of retardation on IQ tests and good
adaptive skills
Learning Disorders
All share deficits in performance below expectations for IQ and school
preparation
Mental Retardation
Subaverage IQ, deficits in adaptive functioning, onset before age 18
Prevention and Early Intervention Are Critical for Developmental Disorders
Delirium
Nature of Delirium
Central features Impaired consciousness and cognition
Impairments develop rapidly over several hours or days
Examples include confusion, disorientation, attention, memory, and
language deficits
Medical Conditions
Drug intoxication, poisons, withdrawal from drugs
Infections, head injury, and several forms of brain trauma
Sleep deprivation, immobility, and excessive stress
Treatment
Attention to precipitating medical problems
Psychosocial interventions include reassurance, coping strategies
Prevention
Address proper medical care for illnesses
Address proper use and adherence to therapeutic drugs
Dementia
Nature of Dementia
Gradual deterioration of brain functioning
Affects judgment, memory, language, and advanced cognitive processes
Dementia has many causes and may be reversible or irreversible
Incidence of Dementia
Affects 2.3% of those 75-79 years of age and 8.5% of persons 85 and
older
Rates of new cases appear to double with every 5 years of age
Vascular Dementia
Vascular Dementia
Head Trauma
Accidents are leading causes of such cognitive impairments
Memory loss is the most common symptom
Parkinsons Disease
Degenerative brain disorder
Affects about 1 out of 1,000 people worldwide
Motor problems are characteristic of this disorder
Damage to dopamine pathways is believed to cause motor
problems
Pattern of impairments are similar to subcortical dementia
Huntingtons Disease
Genetic autosomal dominant disorder (i.e., chromosome 4)
Manifests initially as chorea, usually later in life (around 40s or 50s)
About 20% to 80% of persons go on to display dementia of the
subcortical pattern
Picks Disease
Rare neurological condition that produces a cortical dementia like
Alzheimers
Also occurs later in life (around 40s or 50s)
Little is known about what causes this disease
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Affects 1 out of 1,000,000 persons
Linked to mad cow disease
Do not cause dementia directly, but may influence onset and course
Psychosocial Treatments
Focus on enhancing the lives of dementia patients and their
families/caregivers
Teach adaptive skills
Use memory enhancement prosthetic devices (e.g., memory wallet)
Main emphasis of psychosocial interventions appears to be on the
caregivers
Prevention of Dementia
Amnestic Disorder