Risk factors for behavioural and emotional disorders in children with mild intellectual disability

1 , Goran Mihajlovic 2 , Slobodan Jankovic 2 , Nela Đonovic 2 ABSTRACT Introduction: Th e current study investigated the prev- alence and characteristics of behavioural and emotional disorders in children with mild intellectual disability, as well as the predictive potential of personal and socio-de- mographic factors. Objective: Th e main objective of this research was to determine the impact of socio-demographic and personal factors on the prevalence and types of emotional and behav- ioural disorders in children with mild intellectual disability. Methods: Non-experimental research was conducted on 311 children with mild intellectual disability, aged 9-18 years, who attended 8 special primary schools in central and south-west Serbia. For the assessment of psychopathol- ogy, we used the Child Behaviour Checklist - Teacher Re- port Form (CBCL-TRF), a checklist of problem behaviours in children aged 6-18 years. To collect data on socio-demo- graphic status, we created a questionnaire about socio-eco- nomic factors and demographic indicators. Th e informants were classroom teachers. Results: An increased incidence of behavioural and emo- tional disorders was found in children with mild intellectual disability, compared to children of average intelligence. Both dimensions of psychopathology were signifi cantly infl uenced by personal and socio-demographic variables, including childs age, gender, academic achievement, placement type, parental educational level and employment, as well as the structure and socio-economic status of the families. Conclusion: Children with intellectual disability are at increased risk of developing psychopathology, mostly within the dimension of adjustment and behavioural disorders. Risk factors include specifi c developmental and psychological characteristics and social learning diffi culties, as well as a number of adverse socio-demographic factors.