Investigating the phenomenon of helplessness in mentally retarded adults.

Helplessness, or the inability to take effective action in a problem situation, appears to involve both behavioral-motivational and competence factors. As a personality characteristic, it may cause difficulties in community adjustment for mentally retarded persons. Helplessness in a group of mentally retarded adults was investigated through a set of behavioral and questionnaire measures specifically adapted for this population. Similar measures were applied to a CA control group. Both institutionalized and noninstitutionalized retarded subjects exhibited significantly more signs of helplessness than did the nonretarded control subjects. The results support the hypothesis that helplessness is a meaningful personality dimension among retarded persons and can be objectively measured.