Future Research Directions in Developmental Disabilities

The sheer breadth and depth of research perspectives within the field of developmental disabilities make it difficult to summarize the directions the field is likely to take in the future. It is expected, however, that future research will focus on the intersection between environmental and biomedical factors associated with developmental disorders. Researchers are working to understand the genetic and environmental risk factors that contribute to the incidence and prevalence of developmental disabilities.

Some of the research on genetic and environmental risk factors focuses on small factors and may not illuminate the big picture, while other research focuses on large-scale social issues and fails to isolate the most important biomedical markers. This is to be expected and should not detract from overall hope for the positive impact ...