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Mental and Physical Health and Well-Being of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Disabilities".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 9391

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Dr. Janet Finlayson

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Department of Nursing and Community Health, School of Health and Life Sciences, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow G4 0BA, UK
Interests: improving the health and wellbeing of people with intellectual disabilities and their supporters
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Dear Colleagues,

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have different health patterns compared to the wider population, and they experience a significant number and range of mental and physical health issues more commonly. People with IDD can also experience health inequities when their specific mental and physical health needs are not recognized or met.

This Special Issue aims to attract papers that present advances in research and practice for people with IDD, and their supporters, that have particular relevance to increasing our knowledge/awareness of specific health issues that are more prevalent in this population, as well as interventions and their evaluations to improve their health and wellbeing. Papers with a wider focus on promoting and maintaining the wellbeing of people with IDD, as well as more inclusive environments and public health initiatives, will also be beneficial. We encourage and welcome submissions on this topic from a broad range of disciplines and study types.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Disabilities.

Dr. Janet Finlayson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

intellectual disabilities
developmental disabilities
health

Published Papers (4 papers)

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16 pages, 1125 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Badminton Improves Executive Function in Adults Living with Mild Intellectual Disability

by Yifan Wang, Xueping Wu and Huawei Chen

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(4), 3673; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043673 - 19 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2170

Abstract

Background: Adults with intellectual disability have limited executive function—which includes working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control subcomponents—making their ability to live independently challenging. The present study explored whether a badminton intervention program could improve the executive function of adults living with a mild intellectual disability, but with no physical disability. Methods: This randomized controlled study randomly assigned 30 adults with mild intellectual disabilities recruited from Shanghai Sunshine bases in Shanghai (20 males and 10 females; mean age, 35.80 (3.93) years) to a badminton intervention program (n = 15, training for 12 weeks, 3 times/week, 60 min each time) or the control group (n = 15), which received a typical physical education course consisting primarily of gymnastics. Correct response rates and response times on the Stroop test, n-back task, and task switching were analyzed using two-way analyses of variance, followed by simple effects tests to evaluate inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, respectively, before and after the badminton intervention. Results: No significant difference was detected between the badminton group and the control group (p > 0.05) for their pre-test scores on any subcomponent of executive function. A 2 × 2 repeated-measures analysis of variance showed a significant increase in accuracy in the inhibitory control task for the badminton group after the intervention (p < 0.05). In addition, the accuracy rate and reaction time in a working memory task were significantly improved in the badminton group after the intervention (p < 0.05). Although some improvement in cognitive flexibility was observed for this group after the intervention, it was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). In the control group, there was no significant difference in any executive function subcomponents after the intervention (p > 0.05). Conclusions: These results suggest that badminton may be used as an effective intervention to improve the executive function of adults with a mild intellectual disability and that our protocol may inform future badminton exercise intervention programs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mental and Physical Health and Well-Being of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities)

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14 pages, 2881 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Cognition and Social Factors in Competition: How Do People with Intellectual Disabilities Respond to Opponents?

by Kandianos Emmanouil Sakalidis, Stein Gerrit Paul Menting and Florentina Johanna Hettinga

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(3), 2670; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032670 - 2 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1374

Abstract

Exploring pacing behaviour in people with intellectual disabilities (ID) in competition will help to better understand the impact of cognition and social environment in sports, providing support for the shaping of proper inclusive sports environments. The present experimental study aimed to (1) compare the pacing behaviour and performance between people with and without ID who are inexperienced in cycling and (2) investigate how these are influenced by an opponent. Participants with (n = 8) and without ID (n = 10) performed two randomised 4-km maximal cycling trials, alone and against an opponent. Non-parametric tests for repeated measures data (p ≤ 0.05) revealed that people with ID cycled slower, but with higher inter-individual variation (both conditions) and paced themselves differently compared to people without ID when competing against an opponent. In contrast to the previous literature in athletes without ID, the presence of a faster opponent resulted in a decrease in the performance in the participants with ID. The negative influence of the opponent highlights the potential difficulties people with ID experience to adequately use their opponents to enhance their self-regulatory processes and optimize their pacing and performance in maximal exercise trials. Coaches who want to offer inclusive sports environments for people with ID could take these findings into consideration. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mental and Physical Health and Well-Being of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities)

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14 pages, 2688 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Halliwick Method on Aquatic Skills of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

by Eliska Vodakova, Dimitrios Chatziioannou, Ondrej Jesina and Martin Kudlacek

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 16250; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192316250 - 5 Dec 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4081

Abstract

Background: Swimming and the skills associated with participation in the aquatic environment tend to be an integral part of the movement literacy complex. Non-participation then affects the safety of movement in the aquatic environment and may also be the reason for the limitation of movement, psychological, and social development compared to peers. Methods: This study is a single-subject research study. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of a seven-week intervention program of the Halliwick method in the development of aquatic skills, gross motor skills, and mental skills relevant for aquatic competence for children with autism spectrum disorder. Seven children with autism spectrum disorder participated in swimming classes for a two-week baseline period and a seven-week intervention program of the Halliwick method, one time per week. To measure the effect in the field of aquatic skills, we used the Alyn Water Orientation Test 1. To determine the level of gross motor skills, we used the Gross Motor Function Measure test. Results: There was an improvement in aquatic skills and gross motor skills in seven participants; two of them did not improve in mental adjustment oriented to the breathing control sections in the water. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mental and Physical Health and Well-Being of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities)

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10 pages, 347 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of the COVID-19 Lockdown on the Cognitive Functions in Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

by Raquel Braga and Elena Felipe-Castaño

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 15511; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315511 - 23 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1100

Abstract

The main objective of the research was to compare the cognitive functioning of a sample of persons with IDD (Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities) before the pandemic (2019) and after the pandemic (2020 and 2021), and to analyse the impact according to age and level of IDD impairment. The participants were 92 persons with IDD, of whom 43 were female (46.7%). The mean age in 2019 was 47.07 years (SD = 6.78). All the participants were living with family members. The CAMCOG-DS test from CAMDEX was used to assess the cognitive functions. The results indicate a worsening in cognitive functions (attention–concentration, abstract thought, language, and praxis) after lockdown, in both the total group of participants and the mild–moderate impairment group, and in both age groups. In the severely affected group, we found an improvement in the cognitive functions assessed after lockdown. These results are similar to those found in people with dementia and in the general ageing population. Results were discussed in relation to the consequences of isolation in people with IDD, as well as providing guidelines for future pandemic situations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mental and Physical Health and Well-Being of Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities)

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