Neuroimaging’s Role in Intellectual and Developmental Disability Research

Neuroimaging uses sophisticated technology to characterize the anatomy and physiology of the living human brain. Some forms of neuroimaging have been in use for close to a century. However, it was not until the end of the twentieth century that neuroimaging studies of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) emerged in greater frequency in the research literature. This chapter will review four noninvasive technologies that are used with children and adults with IDD—magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalography, magnetoencephalography, and functional near-infrared spectroscopy. An overview of “how” each technology works as well as “what” it can tell us about “where” and “when” different neural processes occur in the brain is provided. A brief synopsis of what this research has taught us about different forms of IDD is provided along with a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the different approaches. Finally, ethical considerations and the limitations of what we can learn from these studies are discussed.