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Psychological acceptance mediates the impact of the behaviour problems of children with intellectual disability on fathers' psychological adjustment
- Authors:
- MACDONALD Elaine E., HASTINGS Richard P., TITZSIMONS Elaine
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 23(1), January 2010, pp.27-37.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Ninety-nine fathers of 67 boys and 32 girls with intellectual disability, between 6 and 18 years of age, participated in a questionnaire study. Psychological acceptance of difficult/negative emotions and thoughts associated with interactions with the child with intellectual disability were measured alongside ratings of the child's behaviour problems and paternal negative (stress, anxiety, depression) and positive ('positive gain') well-being. Psychological acceptance was found to partially mediate the impact of child behaviour problems on paternal stress, anxiety, and depression. Acceptance was also a positive predictor of fathers' perceptions of positive gain associated with raising their child with intellectual disability. However, it could not function as a potential mediator of positive gain in the present research because fathers' ratings of their child's behaviour problems were not associated with paternal positive gain. Implications for practice include the potential of acceptance-based interventions, and other psychological interventions targeting acceptance and avoidance processes (e.g. mindfulness-based approaches), to positively affect paternal psychological adjustment.
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.