Abstract
ABSTRACT
Developmental disabilities occur among all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Recent estimates in the United States show about 1 in 6, or about 17%, of children aged 3 through 17 years old have one or more developmental disabilities such as ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, intellectual disability, learning disability, vision impairment, and other developmental delays. The purpose of this analysis was to critically appraise various adaptive seating models and the impact they have, if any, on occupational performance of school-aged children with developmental disabilities. There are a variety of ways to adapt the classroom including adaptive seating for desired needs and outcomes. Types of adaptive seating in the classroom include a balance disc, wobble chair, bean bags, etc. This analysis showed that children in the intervention groups experienced improvement in the areas of behavior, fine and visual motor skills, metacognition, and global executive functioning. All adaptive seating models require further investigation into the impact on occupational performance and specific protocols necessary to make the intervention successful and generalizable to further populations.
