Cognitive and social problem solving in adults with intellectual disability

The ability of thirty young adults with intellectual disability to solve cognitive and social problems was examined. Problem solving was measured by asking participants to produce a response to eight hypothetical real life situations. A spared ability to choose the most adaptive solutions was found in both cognitive and social problem solving, although not to the same extent. A relationship was found only between cognitive problem solving and intelligence level: both components were not related to language development and organization The study shows the relevance of studying problem solving in real life but separately assessing both cognitive and social dimensions.