There's an Elephant in the Room: The Impact of Early Poverty and Neglect on Intelligence and Common Learning Disorders in Children, Adolescents, and Their Parents.

Abstract

Recognition of poverty and neglect is very important in formulating a practical diagnosis of children’s and adolescent’s learning disorders. Early brain development forms the basis of learning, behavior and health over the entire life span. Through accumulated stressors and lack of supports, early poverty undermines competent parenting which then impairs learning and is the most common cause of mild mental retardation (MMR). Parenting interventions left until school entry do not prevent the insidious decline in IQ over the developmental period. Most types of learning disorders (e.g., ADHD, LD, FAS/FAE) are either aggravated or actually caused in the presence of chronic early poverty. Lack of functional accessibility to family, extra‐familial and community resources for the poor impairs their adjustment to their children’s learning disorders. Stresses due to poverty and cultural marginalization also exacerbate FAS/FAE. Poverty and despair eclipse diagnostic debates in producing hyperactivity, memory impairment, and social maladjustment. The need for early identification of at‐risk infants and the provision of nurturing stimulation, cognitive training and parental support cannot be over‐emphasized. Treating children with learning disorders is a significant challenge. A complete and accurate history is therefore crucial. The early years are very important. Issues of poverty and neglect are just as important currently (Evans, 2004; Garber & Begab, 1988; McCain & Mustard, 1999) as they were in previous decades (White, 1975). Early neglect impairs brain growth and development (Haydar, 2005) and produces mild mental retardation (MMR), but seldom is the effect of poverty and neglect integrated with our understanding of the etiology of prominent specific learning disorders such as learning disabilities (LDs), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and fetal alcohol syndrome and