title: Children with mental retardation: stigma and stereotype images are hard to change.
abstract: Societal attitudes and perceptions of children with mental retardation have stigmatized and stereotyped generations of youngsters. Deinstitutionalization and mainstreaming most of these children in our schools and general communities require that we recognize and reevaluate many long-held beliefs and how they serve as obstacles to implementing and ensuring needed health and social services. The background and current status of these attitudes are reviewed in an effort to 1) increase practitioner understanding of the population of youngsters with mental retardation that increasingly will be seeking the services of community dentists and 2) encourage legislative efforts and grass-root initiatives (such as the Special Olympics) to change/improve attitudes relative to children with mental retardation.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Dentistry, State University of New York at Stony Brook 11794-8706, USA.
authors.forename: H B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Waldman
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Swerdloff
authors.forename: S P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Perlman
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003730:Dental Care for Persons with Disabilities / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000523:psychology*; D011639:Public Opinion; D013240:Stereotyping