Minimal Cerebral Dysfunction as It Relates to Social Class

Abstract

The relationship of minimal cerebral dysfunction to socioeconomic status was investigated in a midwestern child development clinic population. Two previous reports were contrasted, one stating that minimal cerebral dysfunction (MCD) occurred predominantly in the lower socio-economic strata, the other suggesting that this was more prevalent in the upper classes. It was concluded that: (1) MCD is distributed proportionately with a diagnosis of normal among five social classes; (2) MCD, regardless of the presence or absence of an associated behavior disorder, does not change in its proportional incidence in all social class levels when compared to a normal group; (3) within the MCD group, the presence or absence of an associated behavior disorder does not change the proportion of incidence in the five social class levels. The importance of the sampling population and the background and attitude of the clinician as a possible variable in formulating a diagnosis are discussed.

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