Specific developmental disorder

Developmental retardation denotes a delay of physical, mental or psychological development of children.

Definition

Every child develops after a natural and universal scheme. The order of the individual development steps is fixed, as they build on each other. Example, it is not possible that a child first learning to walk, and then the seats. The speed follow with the individual development steps on each other can be very different in the various areas of development.

So each child has their own pace in each development area and within certain limits, differences in development between children of the same age are completely normal. Studies have found, however, result in limits when children should have achieved individual development steps at the latest. If this is not the case, is spoken by a developmental delay.

Classification

The following areas may be affected to varying degrees of developmental delays:

• The motor development, which includes all movements in gross and fine motor area.

• Cognitive development includes the understanding of contexts, the ability to remember things and the whole thinking.

• The development of the language, which includes the understanding of language and the active language.

• The emotional development refers to the development of emotional life.

• The social development concerns dealing with people, such as the learning of rules of conduct in a group.

Causes

A developmental delay may be due to a variety of damage to the brain during pregnancy, birth or in early childhood. These include congenital and acquired diseases of the nervous system, such as inherited metabolic disorders, meningitis, consequences of a lack of oxygen during birth or accidents involving traumatic brain injury. Traumatic experiences in the biography of the child may have developmental delays. An inadequate supply of stimuli and experiences or withdrawal and decreased emotional ties with the child ( deprivation ) may also be reasons for a developmental delay. At 75 % of development delays no medical basis can be found as the cause (as of 2006), too many unexplained and hidden mechanisms rest here. Boys are affected more often than girls, which demonstrates a gender -specific form with a hereditary connection.

Diagnosis

In order to assess developmental retardation are pediatricians, psychologists, therapists, special educators and other medical professionals numerous scores available, can be determined by means of which the child's level of development for the various areas and compared with the average age. A diagnosis of developmental delay includes all areas of motor skills, perceptual, cognitive characteristics, through to language development and so on. It should be made sound with a team, a once pronounced " developmental delay " quickly leads to a finding of " mental disability "

Concept of developmental delay in the German juvenile justice

Adolescents who were years old at the time of the offense 18-21 or can be tried as a juvenile, if their personality, met due to developmental delays, nor that of a youth. The determination of developmental delay remains mostly without affecting other, associated with the age of majority rights, such as the exercise of the option or obtaining a driving license.