The Psychological Impact of Abuse on Men and Women with Severe Intellectual Disabilities

Background In other populations, the psychological impact of abuse has been conceptualized as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD, DSM‐IV, American Psychiatric Association (APA), 1994), but little is known about whether this is appropriate for adults with severe intellectual disabilities and very l...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities Vol. 26; no. 4; pp. 257 - 270
Main Authors:	Rowsell, A. C., Clare, I. C. H., Murphy, G. H.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	England Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-07-2013 Wiley-Blackwell Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
Subjects:	abuse Adult Adults Caregivers Crime Victims - psychology Emotional Response Family (Sociological Unit) Female Foreign Countries Humans Intellectual disabilities Intellectual Disability Interview, Psychological Interviews Male Mental Health Physiology Post traumatic stress disorder Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Psychological Patterns severe intellectual disability Severe Mental Retardation Severity (of Disability) Severity of Illness Index Sex Offenses - psychology Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - etiology Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - psychology Symptoms (Individual Disorders) Time Factors Trauma United Kingdom Victims Violence - psychology Young Adult United Kingdom United Kingdom > UK
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Summary:	Background In other populations, the psychological impact of abuse has been conceptualized as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD, DSM‐IV, American Psychiatric Association (APA), 1994), but little is known about whether this is appropriate for adults with severe intellectual disabilities and very limited communication skills. Methods An informant interview, based on the framework provided by PTSD, but supplemented with additional questions, was developed and was used to elicit the emotional, behavioural and physiological symptoms of alleged abuse in 18 people with intellectual disabilities at three time points: in the 3 months immediately prior to the alleged abuse (Time 1), in the 3 months immediately after the abuse (Time 2) and in the last 3 months prior to interview (Time 3). Results The reports of the family and carer informants indicated that, following their alleged abuse, the victims experienced marked increases in the frequency and severity of emotional, physiological and behavioural symptoms of psychological distress. Over time, there was some alleviation of these difficulties, but psychological functioning remained severely compromised. Conclusions While the established PTSD framework is appropriate for examining the psychological impact of abuse, some amendments are required to enable clinicians to examine fully the distress of alleged victims with severe intellectual disabilities.
Bibliography:	ark:/67375/WNG-L450LD5X-X istex:9E1FA1BC4E0C1FC25E380DC3B8AA0A1F759C7F0E ArticleID:JAR12016 ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 ObjectType-Article-2 ObjectType-Feature-1
ISSN:	1360-2322 1468-3148
DOI:	10.1111/jar.12016