The new conception and terminology of "intellectual disability" adopted in the English language referring to what was known earlier as "mental retardation" seems to have achieved a satisfactory and stable consensus regarding society expectations for those groups to which this diagnosis refers. Currently, the focus is on the environmental impact on human functioning and development, which will reinforce the emergent need for altering attitudes towards such groups. To this end, this article defends a new proposal changing the Portuguese term from mental retardation to intellectual and developmental disability, establishing the term's meaning and boundaries.
Special Education; Terminology; Intellectual Disability