Intellectual Disability Profiles, Quality of Life and Maladaptive Behavior in Deaf Adults: An Exploratory Study

Johanna Eisinger, Magdalena Dall (), Jason Fogler, Daniel Holzinger and Johannes Fellinger
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Johanna Eisinger: Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, 4020 Linz, Austria
Magdalena Dall: Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, 4020 Linz, Austria
Jason Fogler: Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, 4020 Linz, Austria
Daniel Holzinger: Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, 4020 Linz, Austria
Johannes Fellinger: Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, 4020 Linz, Austria

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 16, 1-11

Abstract: Individuals who are prelingually deaf and have intellectual disabilities experience great challenges in their language, cognitive and social development, leading to heterogeneous profiles of intellectual and adaptive functioning. The present study describes these profiles, paying particular attention to domain discrepancies, and explores their associations with quality of life and maladaptive behavior. Twenty-nine adults with prelingual deafness (31% female) and mild intellectual functioning deficits (mean IQ = 67.3, SD = 6.5) were administered the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II (VABS-II) and an adapted sign language version of a quality of life scale (EUROHIS-QOL 8). Intellectual disability domain discrepancies were characterized as at least one standard deviation difference between the social domain and IQ and the practical domain and IQ, and a significant difference, according to the VABS-II manual, between the social and practical domains. Domain discrepancies were found between intellectual functioning and both the practical (58.6%) and social domain (65.5%). A discrepancy between intellectual and social functioning was significantly associated with a higher level of internalizing maladaptive behavior (T = 1.89, p < 0.05). The heterogeneous profiles highlight the importance of comprehensive assessments for adequate service provision.

Keywords: intellectual disability; deaf; adaptive behavior; intellectual functioning; domain discrepancy; maladaptive behavior; quality of life (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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