Emotional and Psychological Background of the Neurologically Handicapped Child.

The article focuses on the factors that influence the emotional and psychological development of the neurologically handicapped child. According to the author, the components that contribute to the disability of the child include: heredity, environment, organic brain dysfunction, sensory deprivation, and psychological factors. A study found that defective growth and development are more influenced by genetic mutations than by early fetal anoxia. Personality and emotional stability of the child may also be influenced before, during and after birth by environmental factors. There is also evidence that mental retardation is not the result of a general defect of intelligence but may be due to structural damage or malfunction of the cerebral systems of vision and audition.