| American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities | |
| Status: | 501(c)(3)[1] |
| Tax Id: | 06-0636098 |
| Purpose: | To promote progressive policies, sound research, effective practices, and universal human rights for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. |
| Abbreviation: | AAIDD |
| Location: | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States[2] |
| Employees: | 15[3] |
| Employees Year: | 2020 |
| Volunteers: | 20 |
| Volunteers Year: | 2020 |
| Revenue: | $2,970,307 |
| Revenue Year: | 2020 |
| Expenses: | $3,176,466 |
| Expenses Year: | 2020 |
| Leader Name: | Dan Zhang[4] |
| Leader Title: | President |
| Leader Name2: | Margaret Nygren |
| Leader Title2: | Executive Director |
| Formerly: | Association of Medical Officers of American Institutions for Idiotic and Feebleminded Persons, American Association for the Study of the Feebleminded, American Association on Mental Deficiency, American Association on Mental Retardation |
| Founded: | 1876 |
The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) is an American non-profit organization focusing on intellectual disability and related developmental disabilities. AAIDD has members in the United States and more than 50 other countries.
The AAIDD was founded in 1876 by Édouard Séguin,[5] and is the oldest professional association concerned with intellectual and developmental disabilities. AAIDD advocates for the equality, dignity, and human rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and for their full inclusion and participation in society. It is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C.
The name of the association[6] has changed five times in its history, reflecting the changes in thinking about the conditions known today as intellectual disabilities:
The AAIDD's stated mission is to promote progressive policies, sound research, effective practices, and universal human rights for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.[7]
The association's goals are to:
It also has various sub-groups with more specific interests, such as the Religion and Spirituality Interest Network, "an interfaith, interdisciplinary association of professional ordained and lay people who journey with persons with developmental disabilities and their families."[8]
The AAIDD publishes books, evidenced-based assessment tools, and three peer-reviewed journals.
The AAIDD encourages a diversity of contributions from different traditions of inquiry and disciplines;[9] all papers must meet the journals' criteria for rigor and peer review to be considered for publication.
The AAIDD publishes essential books and tools for professionals and others in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities. The organization's most well-known book is its definition manual, first published in 1910 and now in its 12th edition: Intellectual Disability: Definition, Diagnosis, Classification, and Systems of Support.[13] [14]
It also publishes Supports Intensity Scales (SIS), a group of assessment tools that evaluate the practical support requirements of people with intellectual disabilities. It is available in a child version (SIS-C) and an adult version (SIS-A, 2nd ed.). Both versions assess someone's needed level of support, but adjust for differences in age-related expectations. For example, a child would be expected to have a full-time, live-in caretaker (i.e. a parent or guardian) while for an adult that would qualify as extra support. The assessment is done through semi-structured interviews with those who can give insight to the daily life of the person being assessed, up to and including the person themselves when appropriate. The SIS measures support needs in multiple areas of daily life, including housing, education, employment, medical services, and social activities. Assessors rate different categories according to the frequency of support (e.g., none, at least once a month), amount of support (e.g., none, less than 30 minutes), and type of support (e.g., monitoring, verbal gesturing) that a person requires. The overall Supports Intensity Level is determined based on the Total Support Needs Index, which is a standard score generated from the individual ratings.[15]
As the oldest professional organization in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities,[16] AAIDD offers educational opportunities to the global disability community,[17] including an annual conference, webinars, and professional research exchanges.
The association's YouTube channel provides short educational videos on topics related to intellectual and developmental disabilities.[18]