Middle Eastern Journal of Disability Studies

Mendeley  

Zotero  

Yavari Y, Soleymani M, Fakhrpour R, Asadi Faarsani M. The Effects of Physical and Coordination Exercises on Behavior Disorders among Mentally Retarded Children. MEJDS 2014; 4 (2) :52-59
URL: http://jdisabilstud.org/article-1-351-en.html

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of physical & coordination exercises on behavior disorders among mentally retarded children. 

Methods & Materials: Thirty-eight mentally retarded students (29 girls, 9 boys) with a mean age of 14±1.7 years were selected through convenience sampling. Pretest posttest was applied to evaluate the effect of physical & coordination exercises on reducing behavioral disorders in these children. At pretest we used Rutter Children Behavior Questionnaire (RCBQ) (2000). The subjects were then given physical & coordination exercises for six weeks, five days a week. Finally, a day after the last exercise session, the questionnaire was again administered to all the subjects. 

Results: The mean RCBQ score at pretest was 37.68±16.37 and the mean RCBQ score at posttest was 21.13±11.86 which was statistically significant at p>0.001. Based on the results, the physical & coordination exercises had reduced behavior disorders among the mentally retarded children.

Conclusion: Generally speaking, physical & coordination exercises improve mental health and are effective in reducing behavior disorders among mentally retarded children. These results can be applied by the officials in welfare and health organizations to improve behavior disorders among mentally retarded individuals.