


This is a paragraph from (Diagnostic Manual – Intellectual Disability (DM-ID): A Clinical Guide for Diagnosis of Mental Disorders in Persons with Intellectual Disability ) show this terminology problem:
Terminology: Intellectual Disability (ID) versus Mental Retardation (MR)
The editors of this Manual recognize that the use of terms to describe individual differences in cognitive abilities is controversial. The DSM-IV-TR uses the term Mental Retardation to denote disabilities of this nature, but this term has fallen into disfavor in many areas. In much of Europe and Canada as well as in the United States, the term Intellectual Disability (ID) is used with increased frequency in some circles. In 2007, the American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR) changed its name to the American Association on Intellectual and Other Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD). The Journal of Intellectual Disability Research (JIDR) was formally the Journal of Mental Deficiency Research. The President's Committee on Mental Retardation (PCMR) has changed its name to the President's Committee for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (PCPID). Nonetheless, the term Mental Retardation is still used in some areas of the United States for insurance and billing purposes. To add to the confusion, the term Learning Disability is used in the United Kingdom and is synonymous with the terms Mental Retardation and Intellectual Disability.