Professional review teams in nine Third World countries assessed a sample of children
referred as probable cases (or as controls) from a door to door household survey of
1000+ children aged 3 to 9 years. Retrospectively each team specified the criteria
they had used to decide on whether or not individuals should be classified as
"severely mentally retarded" (intellectually disabled). The paper analyses these
criteria in terms of the behavioural domains to which they refer, the measures with
which they were operationalised and the ways in which they were coordinated to
arrive at a "diagnosis". Substantial consensus was found on the importance of five
broad domains, although the precise measures used varied across the teams.
Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
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