Developmental Delay

A condition in which a child does not reach developmental milestones — such as motor skills, speech, social skills, or cognitive abilities — at the expected ages. Developmental delay may affect one or multiple areas of development and can be caused by genetic conditions, prenatal factors, or environmental influences. In accessibility and assistive technology contexts, developmental delay is significant because children and adults with these conditions may require adapted interfaces, additional time, simplified instructions, and specialized training approaches to acquire skills that typically developing individuals learn incidentally.