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Impact of a 3-day training course on challenging behaviour on staff cognitive and emotional responses
- Authors:
- TIERNEY Edel, QUINLAND Dave, HASTINGS Richard P.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 20(1), January 2007, pp.58-63.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
A range of factors have been suggested as determinants of staff behaviour in the context of working with people with challenging behaviour. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a typical challenging behaviour staff training course had an effect on staff feelings of efficacy, their negative emotional reactions to challenging behaviour, and their causal beliefs. Forty-eight staff from intellectual disability organisations in the Health Service Executive Southern Region in Ireland attending a 3-day training course on understanding challenging behaviour and managing stress were assessed pre-training and at a 3-month follow-up. Questionnaires assessing self-efficacy, emotional reactions and causal beliefs were used. Perceived self-efficacy in dealing with challenging behaviours increased significantly from pre- to post-training. There were no significant changes in either emotional reactions to challenging behaviours or causal beliefs. In common with previous research, there was a sizeable impact on staff confidence and efficacy after a 3-day training course. Given the potential significance of emotional reactions both in terms of staff behaviour and their psychological well-being at work, more research is needed to explore how these reactions might best be dealt with in staff training interventions.
Positive contributions made by children with an intellectual disability in the family: mothers’ and fathers’ perceptions
- Authors:
- HASTINGS Richard P., BECK Alexander, HILL Christopher
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 9(2), June 2005, pp.155-165.
- Publisher:
- Sage
- Place of publication:
- London
The aims of this article were to test the psychometric properties of the Positive Contributions Scale (PCS), and to compare perceptions of positive contributions reported by mothers and fathers. Participants were 140 mothers and 60 fathers of children with intellectual disabilities. Results supported the reliability and construct validity of the PCS. Internal consistency was good for all subscales bar one, and the PCS total score was associated with scores on the Positive Affect Scale. There were differences on PCS scales for mothers and fathers, with mothers generally reporting more positive contributions than fathers. The PCS is a reasonably robust measure and its use in future research should help to address questions about the nature and function of parental positive perceptions. The PCS might also be used in applied settings to help balance the effects of asking families about their difficulties and support needs.
Early correlates of behavioural and emotional problems in children and adolescents with severe intellectual disabilities: a preliminary study
- Authors:
- HASTINGS Richard P., MOUNT Rebecca H.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 14(4), 2001, pp.381-391.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The parents of 188 children attending schools for those with severe learning difficulties completed the Developmental Behaviour Checklist (DBC), and a questionnaire asking for demographic details and information about present and early correlates. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed to explore whether potential early correlates from infancy could add to the prediction of behaviour problems from established correlates and diagnostic variables. Potential early correlates across all of the DBC domains did not add significantly to the prediction of behaviour problems. However, there were effects of sex, physical ability and diagnostic categories. A number of methodological factors are discussed in terms of how they impact on the results.
Staff behaviour and challenging behaviour: a reply to Clegg's commentary
- Authors:
- HASTINGS Richard P., REMINGTON Bob
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 33(4), November 1994, pp.445-450.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
In the commentary on the integration of the literature on challenging behaviours and care staff behaviour, Clegg discusses three main issues. Firstly, arguing that a behaviour analytic approach to challenging behaviours is 'deeply impoverished'. Secondly, claiming that the analysis laid the blame for challenging behaviours on the shoulders of care staff. Finally, presenting the philosophical position as objectivist. Replies to these comments by summarizing the richness and considerable potential of an approach to challenging behaviours based on behaviour analytic theory.
Physical and psychological health of family carers co-residing with an adult relative with an intellectual disability
- Authors:
- GREY Jillian M., TOTSIKA Vasiliki, HASTINGS Richard P.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(Supplement S2), 2018, pp.191-202.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: Providing long-term care to an adult relative with intellectual disability can impact negatively on caregivers’ health and well-being. Methods: Data were collected via online and postal questionnaires on 110 family carers’ physical and psychological health, family stress and perceived positive gains from caring. Psychological adaptation and carers’ satisfaction with available support were also examined. Results: Study participants reported more health problems than general populations. Higher support needs of care recipients were associated with increased family stress. Carers being female were associated with lower family stress. Older age and better socio-economic position were associated with better psychological outcomes. Other associations were consistent with psychological adaption and perceived helpfulness of support buffering negative outcomes and facilitating positive gains from caring. Conclusions: Family carers of adults with intellectual disability appear to experience poorer health outcome than population norms. Adaption to the caregiving role may buffer negative outcomes. Further large scale, population-based, longitudinal research is needed. (Publisher abstract)
Pro-social behaviour and behaviour problems independently predict maternal stress
- Authors:
- BECK Alexandra, HASTINGS Richard P., DALEY Dave
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 29(4), December 2004, pp.339-349.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities generally report more stress than other parents. Child behavioural features, and specifically their behaviour problems, have been shown to account for some of the variation in parents' experience of stress. However, there has been no exploration of whether the child's pro-social behaviour is predictive of parenting stress. In the present study, 74 mothers of children with intellectual disabilities completed measures of stress and mental health and reported on their child's adaptive behaviour, problem behaviour, and pro-social behaviour. Regression analyses revealed that the child's behaviour problems were an independent positive predictor of maternal stress, the child's pro-social behaviour was a negative predictor of maternal stress, but adaptive behaviour was not a predictor. These results support the need for more research on the pro-social behaviours of children with intellectual disabilities, especially their putative impact on parental well-being.
Clinical and actuarial prediction of physical violence in a forensic intellectual disability hospital: a longitudinal study
- Authors:
- McMILLAN Dean, HASTINGS Richard P., COLDWELL Jon
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 17(4), December 2004, pp.255-265.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
There is a high rate of physical violence in populations with intellectual disabilities, and this has been linked to problems for the victim, the assailant, members of staff and services. Despite the clinical significance of this behaviour, few studies have assessed methods of predicting its occurrence. The present study examined clinical and actuarial methods of predicting violence in a forensic intellectual disability hospital. The sample for the study consisted of people resident in the hospital during a 1-year period (n = 124). Clinical prediction used a risk rating made by members of the person's clinical team, whereas actuarial prediction used the number of violent incidents in the 6-months before the date of the clinical risk assessment. Computerized hospital records of violence in the 6 months after the assessment were used to examine the predictive accuracy of the two methods. The clinical method produced an area under the curve of 0.74 (95% CI: 0.650.83) in a receiveroperating characteristic curve analysis. The value for the actuarial method was 0.77 (95% CI: 0.690.86). Both methods performed at levels significantly above chance, but no one method was found to be superior to the other. These findings suggest that it is possible to predict who is at risk of violence in forensic populations with intellectual disabilities. Here, the authors discuss the clinical implications of these findings and the clinical application of risk prediction within clinical services.
Social and professional support for parents of adolescents with severe intellectual disabilities
- Authors:
- WHITE Nia, HASTINGS Richard P.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 17(3), September 2004, pp.181-190.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Previous research has identified various dimensions of social support that are positively associated with parental well-being. However, most research does not include multiple measures of social support and uses heterogeneous samples in terms of child characteristics such as age and severity of intellectual disability. Thirty-three parents of adolescent children with moderate–profound intellectual disabilities completed measures of parental well-being (stress, anxiety and depression, and caregiving satisfaction), social support (informal and formal sources, and practical and emotional support), and child characteristics (adaptive and problem behaviours). Correlation analyses showed that parental well-being was associated with the child's adaptive and problem behaviours and with the child's autism diagnosis. Parents’ ratings of the helpfulness of informal sources of support (spouse, extended family, friends, etc.) was most reliably associated with parental well-being, and remained so after controlling for child characteristics. Parents’ access of service and professional support was not associated with parental well-being, but there was some evidence that it was related to their child's needs. The research emphasizes the significance of including multiple measures of social support in research with families of children with an intellectual disability. Furthermore, the possibility that parents, during their child's adolescence, may be especially vulnerable to the disruption of their informal support networks is an important practical consideration.
Staff reactions to self-injurious behaviours in learning disability services: attributions, emotional responses and helping
- Authors:
- JONES Cheryl, HASTINGS Richard P.
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 42(2), June 2003, pp.189-203.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This study explores an amended version of Weiner's helping behaviour model potentially more specific to the context of care staff working with people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviours. Key elements of the helping model (causal attributions, affective responses and helping behaviour) were assessed using self-report questionnaires. Helping behaviour was conceptualised as behaviour likely to reinforce challenging behaviour rather than as willingness to expend extra effort helping. 123 care staff in adult services viewed one of two videos depicting a person with learning disabilities engaging in self-injurious behaviour. Staff completed self-report scales after viewing the video material. Results found little evidence for the predicted associations between causal attributions and both positive and negative afffect. The study found no evidence that Weiner's model could be amended to account for staff working with challenging behaviour. Discusses the potential utility of alternative models in addition to methodological and conceptual issues.
Factors Related to Positive Perceptions in Mothers of Children with Intellectual Disabilities
- Authors:
- HASTINGS Richard P., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 15(3), September 2002, pp.269-273.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Existing theoretical and empirical work in the intellectual disability field has paid little attention to parents' positive perceptions of their child and the positive impact that the child may have on the family generally. The main aim of this article is to explore the factors related to the mothers' positive perceptions of their child with intellectual disability.The mothers of 41 children with intellectual disabilities completed a self-report questionnaire that measured demographic factors, child demographic variables (including caregiving demand), social support, coping strategies and dimensions of positive perceptions.Mothers' perceptions of the child as a source of happiness/fulfillment and as a source of strength and family closeness were positively associated with reframing coping strategies. Mothers' perceptions of the child as a source of personal growth and maturity were also positively associated with reframing coping strategies, the helpfulness and usefulness of support from family and friends, and the caregiving demand.