| Dr. John Langdon Down, born in 1828 and died | | | | syndrome. For my research, I distributed |
| in 1896, was the medical superintendent of | | | | twenty open-ended questionnaires to ten males |
| the Royal Earlswood Asylum for Idiots in | | | | and ten females of an all Caucasian |
| London. He studied what he termed Mongolian | | | | population. The total population had ages |
| idiocy which was based on the measurements of | | | | ranging from twenty years to sixty years. |
| the head and palate. This became a racial | | | | Approximately one-third of the population |
| stereotype in that Asian descendants were | | | | studied came from Peoria, Illinois. Close to |
| called Mongoloids, but they are not directly | | | | one-third of the population resided in cities |
| related to Mongolian idiocy, now termed Down | | | | south of Peoria, Illinois and roughly another |
| syndrome or Trisomy 21 (Ward, 2004).More than | | | | third of the population I chose lived just |
| six thousand babies with Down syndrome are | | | | north of Peoria, Illinois. The majority of |
| born in the United States each year. Down | | | | my subjects had some college education, while |
| syndrome occurs in all races, ethnic groups, | | | | a portion had a high school diploma and a few |
| socioeconomic classes, and nationalities. | | | | had a college degree. Annual household |
| Genetics play a major role in Down syndrome. | | | | incomes ranged from zero to twenty-five |
| A person without Down syndrome has forty-six | | | | thousand dollars to more than sixty-five |
| chromosomes, while a person with Down | | | | thousand dollars with the majority earning |
| syndrome has forty-seven. This results from | | | | over sixty-five thousands dollars a year. Of |
| cell division, which is how the chromosomes | | | | the twenty subjects, there were various |
| divide between the sperm and egg, usually | | | | religions reported, such as Methodist, |
| twenty-three for each. Down syndrome is | | | | Catholic, Presbyterian, and Lutheran, |
| determined by looking at a karyotype or a | | | | nondenominational Christian. I did not find |
| picture of chromosomes after cell division is | | | | any correlations between the residence, |
| complete. Chromosomes can be taken through | | | | education, income, or religion of my subjects |
| amniotic fluid, usually done by an | | | | and Down Syndrome. Over half of the subjects |
| amniocentesis. Down syndrome is | | | | studied knew one or more persons with Sown |
| characterized by looking at the twenty-first | | | | syndrome, while seven said they did not know |
| chromosome which has three chromosomes | | | | anyone with Down syndrome.I did discover that |
| instead of two, thus called Trisomy 21 | | | | the majority of females tend to be more |
| (Stray-Gundersen, 1995). Persons with Down | | | | passive and positive about Down syndrome, |
| syndrome have many different physical | | | | whereas most of the males had more |
| characteristics, such as low muscle tone, | | | | realistically, yet negative comments related |
| small facial features, a protruding tongue, | | | | to Down syndrome. Age did play a factor in |
| smaller head circumference, short stature, | | | | my research in that the subjects, age twenty |
| and small, webbed hands and feet.My research | | | | to forty-five, have less knowledge about Down |
| is based on the social-conflict theory | | | | syndrome. Eleven people said that the |
| because society fears what they do not | | | | maternal age of a newborn with Down syndrome |
| understand, therefore, conflict arises within | | | | is over thirty-five years. I found that the |
| the socialization of a person with Down | | | | more personal experience an individual has |
| syndrome. My hypothesis is that society has a | | | | with Down syndrome, the more knowledge they |
| negative perspective of individuals with Down | | | | have about this defect. |