Assessing Individual Functioning and Disability - Assistive Technology Assessment - page 20

to have the greatest potential to solve the target problems) through the analysis of the
RPS-Form as a basis for the team to discuss each case in the framework of the ICF
model of functioning and disability.
In 2002, the AAMR released its Mental Retardation: Definition, Classification, and Systems
of Supports (Luckasson et al. 2002) in which human functioning and intellectual abili-
ties are described as influenced by five factors: (i) intelligence; (ii) adaptive behavior;
(iii) participation, interaction, and social roles; (iv) health; and (v) context. Intelligence is
defined as “a general mental ability that includes reasoning, planning, solving problems,
thinking abstractly, comprehending complex ideas, learning quickly, and learning from
experience” (Luckasson et al. 2002, p. 51). Adaptive behavior is defined as “the collec-
tion of conceptual, social, and practical skills that have been learned by people in order
to function in their everyday lives” (Luckasson et al. 2002, p. 73). The participation and
interaction concern the degree of commitment of the person in daily activities and his
or her involvement in the surrounding environment. Social roles regard the set of activi-
ties that are considered normal for a specific age group. The definition of health, meant
as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, is in line with the one
determined by WHO. Finally, the context is a concept adapted from Bronfenbrenner's
theory (1979) and describes the relationships in which the person is involved, including
“the person, family, and/or advocates; the neighborhood, community, or organization
providing education or habilitation services or supports; and the overarching patterns of
culture, society, larger populations, country, or sociopolitical influences” (Schalock and
Luckasson 2004, p. 142). The 2002 System claims for the multidimensionality of the intel-
lectual disability (ID) and assigns a central role to the supports as a mediator between
the multidimensional aspects of ID and the individual functioning. In the 2002 System,
“supports are defined as resources and strategies that aim to promote the development,
education, interests, and personal well-being of a person and that enhance individual
functioning” (Schalock and Luckasson 2004, p. 142) so that the individual functioning is
determined by the interaction of the supports with the five dimensions listed earlier. The
supports are provided with the main purpose of enhancing personal outcomes related
to independence, relationships, contributions, school and community participation, and
personal well-being of people with ID, and the assessment process is based on everyday
life activity areas. An important aspect of the assessment process in the 2002 System is
represented by the clinical judgment, defined as
A special type of judgment rooted in a high level of clinical expertise and experience
that emerges directly from extensive data. It is based on the clinician's explicit train-
ing, direct experience with person with whom the clinician is working, and familiarity
with the person and the person's environment, including his/her family. (Schalock and
Luckasson 2004, pp. 143-144)
1.5 Assessing Individual Functioning and
Disability in the ATA Process
In the ATA process model, the assessment is defined as
A user-driven process through which the selection of one or more technological aids for
an assistive solution is facilitated by the comprehensive utilization of clinical measures,