Social disability at institutionalized young people is emerging as a disadvantage compared with non-institutionalized, produced by the absence of family environment, by inadequate extra-school influences, or emotional and behavioral disorders. These disorders, subsequent to institutionalization, may lead to their transformation into other types of mental disorders, such as mental deficiency and social maladjustment.

Thus, we tried a psycho-pedagogical and psychopathological approach of depression found in individuals with social disabilities (abandoned and institutionalized children in orphanages), aiming, with specific means, a theoretical and experimental understanding of known or probable relationship between depressive symptoms and social disability for abandoned children, the practical need being to identify early manifestations of depression and begin rapidly the treatment in children abandoned.

Our conclusion was that young people in institutions are less able to regulate dysphoric-aggressive affects, compared to non-institutionalized children, which often develop conciliatory behaviors and present higher levels of tolerance.