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A programme for alcohol related violence with offenders with intellectual disability
- Authors:
- LINDSAY William R., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disabilities and Offending Behaviour, 5(2), 2014, pp.107-119.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: Although studies suggest alcohol abuse is not the major problem among offenders and others with intellectual disabilities (ID), it is still a significant problem. There are also suggestions that alcohol may have a more serious effect on those with ID. The purpose of this paper is to describe a treatment for alcohol-related difficulties designed for people with ID. Design/methodology/approach: A programme for alcohol-related problems is described and four case studies are presented to illustrate the sessions and review the way in which people with ID have responded to the methods. The cases have a mixture of alcohol-related problems including anger, anxiety, social withdrawal and depression. The alcohol programme is coordinated with a range of person centred interventions for specific difficulties. Findings: All cases responded to the programme positively. Two cases showed reductions in anger, two reported reductions in anxiety and one reported reductions in depression. All cases increased their alcohol knowledge considerably. Research limitations/implications: The programme seems promising in its approach to alcohol-related difficulties. It is noted that alcohol education alone is likely to improve participants’ wellbeing in the absence of coordinated intervention for other relevant personal difficulties. A controlled treatment trial for effectiveness is clearly required. Originality/value: The paper describes a programme for alcohol-related problems and may be the first such programme that has contained pilot evaluation. (Publisher abstract)
Two studies on the prevalence and validity of personality disorder in three forensic intellectual disability samples
- Authors:
- LINDSAY William R., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology (The), 17(3), September 2006, pp.485-505.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
There is an extensive research literature on the association between personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, and risk of future violent and sexual offences. Several studies have found an elevated prevalence of personality disorder diagnoses amongst those individuals with severe mental illness and criminal populations. While there has been some work on the prevalence of personality disorder among intellectual disability populations, it has been criticised as being unreliable and inconsistent. The present authors have taken account of these criticisms and recommendations in this comparison of 164 offenders with intellectual disability across three settings – community, medium/low secure, and high secure. In Study 1, DSM-IV diagnoses were made on the basis of four information sources: file review, interview with clinician, observations by care staff, and the Structured Assessment of Personality Interview. Across the samples, total prevalence of PD was 39.3%. The most common diagnosis was antisocial personality disorder. There was a higher rate of diagnosis in the high security setting, with no significant differences between the other two settings. There was no diagnosis of dependent PD, indicating that assessors were not overly influenced by the developmental disability itself. In Study 2 it was found that increase in severity of PD (as indicated by PCL-R scores and/or the number of PD diagnoses) showed a strong lawful relationship with instruments predicting future violence (VRAG, RM 2000/V) and a weaker relationship with instruments predicting future sexual offences (Static-99, RM 2000/S). The results indicate the utility of PD classification in this client group and that a number of individuals with PD classification are being managed successfully in community settings. These findings have considerable implications for staffing, both in terms of which individuals can be treated by these services and staff training.
Response patterns on the questionnaire on attitudes consistent with sexual offending in groups of sex offenders with intellectual disabilities
- Authors:
- LINDSAY William R., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 19(1), March 2006, pp.47-53.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This report employs a recently developed assessment on attitudes consistent with sexual offending [Questionnaire on Attitudes Consistent with Sexual Offences (QACSO)] to compare different groups of sex offenders with intellectual disability. Two studies are reported each from a different region and each conducted by different individuals. Study 1 compared 12 sex offenders against adults with 12 offenders against children. The six-scale version of the QACSO was administered including rape and attitudes to women, voyeurism, exhibitionism, dating abuse, homosexual assault and offences against children. Study 2 employed three groups of 10 participants each: offenders against adults, exhibitionists and offenders against children. The seven scale version of the QACSO (stalking added) was used. All questionnaires were administered individually. In both studies, the offenders against adults reported higher levels of attitudes consistent with sexual offending in the area of rape and attitudes to women with medium to large effect sizes and a significant difference in study 1. In both studies, offenders against children reported significantly higher levels of cognitive distortions (large effect sizes) in the area of offences against children. Both differences were in the predicted direction and there were no other significant differences on other sections. In general, all three groups reported higher levels of cognitive distortions than non-offenders. There would appear to be some specificity particularly for the rape and attitudes to women scale, and the offenders against children scale. The same specificity does not emerge from other scales of the QACSO. The study also lends support to the inclusion of techniques which explore and challenge attitudes consistent with offending both generally and in relation to specific offences.
Comparing offenders against women and offenders against children on treatment outcome in offenders with intellectual disability
- Authors:
- LINDSAY William R., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 24(4), July 2011, pp.361-369.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The most significant developments in the field of sex offender treatment have been based on problem solving and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy techniques. Several studies have shown the positive effects of sex offender treatment for men with intellectual disabilities who have perpetrated sex offences. The aim of this study was to provide a comparison of the process of treatment change amongst men with intellectual disabilities who have offended either against adult women or against children. The participants comprised of 15 men who had offended against adult women and 15 who offended against children. All were treated for 36 months and had at least 2 years follow-up after the treatment to determine the rate of reoffending. Groups were compared with repeated measures using the Questionnaire on Attitudes Consistent with Sexual Offending. The findings showed that at baseline the offenders against women had higher scores than the offenders against children on the rape scale. Both groups showed significant improvement with scores reducing to levels consistent with non-offenders by 36 months. Significant improvements were recorded from 18 to 36 months of treatment. Re-offending across both groups was 23%. The article concludes that sex offender treatment can produce significant reductions in cognitive distortions in sex offenders with intellectual disabilities. The findings also demonstrate the importance of continuing treatment for longer than 12 months.