Public Policy and Outcomes for Persons With Intellectual Disability: Extending and Expanding the Public Policy Framework of AAIDD's 11th Edition of Intellectual Disability: Definition, Classification, and Systems of Support

In 2010, the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) published the 11th edition of its terminology and classification manual of intellectual disability (formerly “mental retardation”) titled Intellectual Disability: Definition, Classification, and Systems of Support (Schalock et al., 2010). Before publication, members of the AAIDD Ad Hoc Committee on Terminology and Classification published a series of five articles between 2007 and 2009 to share the committee's thoughts and seek input from the field on critical issues associated with terminology, definition, and classification. These articles focused on the shift from the term mental retardation to intellectual disability (Schalock et al., 2007), the construct underlying the term intellectual disability (Wehmeyer et al., 2008), the support needs of people with intellectual disability (Thompson et al., 2009), unique issues encountered by individuals with higher IQs (Snell et al., 2009), and...