Self-determination skills and opportunities of adolescents with severe intellectual and developmental disabilities.
We asked teachers and parents to assess the self-determination prospects of 135 youth with severe intellectual and developmental disabilities. Teachers typically reported that youth evidenced limited knowledge about self-determined behavior, ability to perform these behaviors, and confidence regarding the efficacy of their self-determination efforts. Parents and teachers diverged in their evaluations of the self-determination capacities of youth but agreed that opportunities to engage in self-determined behavior were available both at school and home. Although social skill and problem behavior ratings both were significant predictors of teachers' ratings of students' self-determination capacity, opportunities at school, opportunities at home, and problem behaviors were negatively correlated with ratings of students' self-determination capacities and opportunities.
University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. ewcarter@wisc.edu
Erik W
EW
Carter
Laura
L
Owens
Audrey A
AA
Trainor
Ye
Y
Sun
Beth
B
Swedeen
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D026684:Personal Autonomy; D019989:Persons with Intellectual Disabilities / Q000523:psychology*; D011340:Problem Solving; D011594:Psychometrics; D012649:Self Concept; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012919:Social Behavior; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult