Communication with people with intellectual disability

Intellectual disability affects different areas of personality but very irregularly. The most basic criterion of Intellectual developmental Disability (IDD) is IQ lower than 70. Lower intellectual abilities affect learning, and people with severe IDD are able to learn to write, read, or count, either in a very limited fashion or not at all (they remain illiterate). These people have difficulties with learning in general.

Sometimes, they behave strangely and they:

• could be very spontaneous;
• have low self-control;
• have no social inhibitions;
• do not think about consequences;
• are emotional;
• have weak will;
• are easily persuaded, and thus, can be manipulated or abused.

Their communication skills may be strongly affected; these people tend to have speech disorders, have limited vocabulary, and sometimes cannot speak at all.

(Photo by Cliff Booth from Pexels)