DELINQUENCY AND LEARNING DISABILITIES (FROM LEARNING DISABILITIES - INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATION AND MEDICAL MANAGEMENT, BY LESTER TARNOPOL)

• NCJ Number: 57530
• Author(s): L TARNOPOL
• Date Published: 1967
• Length: 26 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Health, Education, and Welfare
• Corporate Author: Charles C. Thomas
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THE DELINQUENT, SCHOOL DROPOUT POPULATION FROM MINORITY GHETTOS IS BELIEVED TO CONTAIN A GREATER PERCENTAGE OF MINIMAL BRAIN DYSFUNCTION IN THE PRESENCE OF ADEQUATE INTELLIGENCE THAN THE GENERAL POPULATION OF CHILDREN.

Abstract

THE TERM 'MINIMAL BRAIN DYSFUNCTION' IS USED TO DESGINATE THE MEDICAL ENTITY RELATED TO THE EDUCATIONAL TERM 'LEARNING DISABILITIES'. CHILDREN WITH MINIMAL BRAIN DYSFUNCTION MAY EXHIBIT DIFFICULTIES IN VISUAL PERCEPTION, AUDITORY PERCEPTION, MOTOR COORDINATION, BALANCE, TACTILE PERCEPTION, AND KINESTHETIC PERCEPTION--SINGLY OR IN COMBINATION. AN ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED OF EVIDENCE DERIVED FROM TESTING 19 TRAINEES WORKING AS SOCIAL SERVICE AIDES AND SELECTED TO ACT AS PROSOCIAL INFLUENCES IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS AND 83 CONTROLS EMPLOYED BY THE NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTH CORPS. ALL SUBJECTS WERE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 16 TO 23 YEARS, AND WERE PRIMIARILY FROM MINORITY GHETTOS. ALMOST ALL PARTICIPANTS HAD DROPPED OUT OF SCHOOL AND HAD ENGAGED IN SOME FORM OF DELINQUENCY. ON THE WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE, 39 PERCENT OF THE POPULATION HAD SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT VERBAL AND PERFORMANCE INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT SCORES. THE MEAN GRADE AT WHICH PARTICIPANTS DROPPED OUT OF SCHOOL WAS 10.5. ON THE GATES READING TO UNDERSTAND DIRECTIONS TEST, 64 PERCENT WERE BELOW THE SIXTH GRADE LEVEL, AND 58 PERCENT WERE READING BELOW SIXTH GRADE LEVEL. ONLY ONE-THIRD SCORED WITHIN THE NORMAL RANGE ON THE BENDER VISUAL-MOTOR GESTALT TEST, AND MOST TENDED TO BE DEFICIENT IN THE SPATIAL RELATIONS OF LOCAL GEOGRAPHY. MOST VISUAL-MOTOR PROBLEMS WERE RELATED TO VISUAL-MOTOR INTEGRATION AND MOTOR COORDINATION, AND ONLY A SMALL PROPORTION OF THE VISUAL-MOTOR PROBLEMS WAS RELATED TO DISTURBANCES OF VISUAL PERCEPTION. RIGHT HEMISHERE WECHSLER SUBTEST SCORES WERE FOUND TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN THE LEFT HEMISPHERE SCORES. ALL THESE TEST DEFICIENCIES ARE KNOWN TO BE PART OF THE MINIMAL BRAIN DYSFUNCTION SYNDROME WHICH IS RELATED TO LEARNING DISABILITIES. THIS CUMULATIVE EVIDENCE SUPPORTS THE HYPOTHESIS THAT A SIGNIFICANT DEGREE OF MINIMAL BRAIN DYSFUNCTION EXISTS IN THE MINORITY DELINQUENT, SCHOOL DROPOUT POPULATION. REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSRACT MODIFIED--KJM)