Clinical diagnostics of psycho-social and cognitive standard of performance in youth with mental disabilities.

The clinical diagnostics of cognitive limitations and the resulting problems of social development occurring in childhood and adolescence are essential for further stimulation as well as for possible treatment strategies for comorbid mental diseases. This complex process should be carried out on several levels and with different methods. The resulting praxis-oriented question is defined via the pros and cons of the current procedure for the recording of psycho-social and cognitive stage of development of young people with mental disabilities. The online-based research in relevant databases was conducted systematically and yielded 3,324 articles. After fully reviewing the disqualifying criteria, 30 procedures remained. Twenty-four procedures could be assigned to "tests of development and intelligence" and six to "observer rating and self-report methods". It becomes clear that the majority of treatments have been standardized for children and adolescents of average intelligence. Meaning, only inaccurate information regarding the participation of children and adolescents with intelligence impairments in the standardized sample were given. This goes hand in hand with qualifying criteria that were not tested in consideration of the needs of people with intelligence impairment. Despite the current unsatisfactory situation, there is a demand for diagnostic instruments of the psycho-social and cognitive standard of performance in youth with mental disabilities. Currently, K-ABC II and ADOS-2 are recommended in combination with the observer rating methods ADI-R, VFE, and SRS.