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Do male and female forensic patients with learning disabilities differ on subscales of the Novaco Anger Scale and Provocation Inventory (NAS-PI)?
- Authors:
- CHILVERS Jane, THOMAS Cathy
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Learning Disabilities and Offending Behaviour, 2(2), 2011, pp.84-97.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
While anger is associated with learning disabled populations, the role of gender is not clear. This study examined the experience of anger in females within a forensic psychiatric service. The Novaco Anger Scale and Provocation Inventory was applied. Scores obtained by 12 females were compared with those of 23 males. Findings revealed significant differences between gender scores, suggesting female forensic patients with learning disabilities experience higher levels of anger than do males, particularly in the arousal domain, and demonstrated difficulties in regulating anger. Gender specific differences, and the potential influence of learning disabilities should be considered when assessing and treating anger difficulties. Female forensic patients with learning disabilities may benefit from a greater emphasis on anger arousal reduction work. The authors recommend further research using more measures to further understand how the impact of gender and learning disabilities on the experience of anger is related.
Everyday practices of exclusion/inclusion: women who have an intellectual disability speaking for themselves?
- Authors:
- WELSBY Janette, HORSFALL Debbie
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 26(7), 2011, pp.795-807.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This article describes a small in-depth qualitative study which sought to understand the lives of women who have an intellectual disability. The participants were 5 women, aged between 28 and 52, who lived in the suburbs of Sydney, were receiving a Disability Support Pension and worked part-time in either the Business Services Sector or open employment. An arts-based research process, augmented by one-to-one in-depth interviews, was used. This enabled the women to speak how, and about what, they chose. The women chose to focus on the themes of work, friendship, identity and everyday life. Thematic analysis of the data showed that the women experienced practices of social and emotional exclusion, and inclusion, in their everyday lives. When they were excluded they were often aware of what was going on and had developed strategies, such as humour and using advocacy services, to deal with exclusionary practices. Further research which elicits such resistant practices and working with women to strengthen them could be useful for people interested in notions of inclusion.
Caregiver attitudes to gynaecological health of women with intellectual disability
- Authors:
- LIN Lan-Ping, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 36(3), September 2011, pp.149-155.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Previous research has indicated with women with intellectual disability (ID) have reduced access to reproductive health care. As caregivers often take charge of healthcare issues for people with ID, this study aimed to describe caregiver attitudes and to examine determinants of acceptable gynaecological health for women with ID. A mailed-out, self-administered, structured questionnaire was completed by 1152 caregivers responsible for the care of women with ID. Attitudinal perceptions of reproductive health were divided into 4 domains: menstruation, menopause, sex education, and preventive healthcare. Each of these domains had 5 issues which were scored according to the level of agreement with each issue. Most of the caregivers expressed agreement concerning the implementation of gynaecological healthcare checks, such as Pap smear or mammography tests. The study also revealed that more attention needs to be paid to the following factors: enforcing workplace training for reproductive health; strengthening public reproductive health services; and improving the reproductive health knowledge of caregivers.
Same-sex relationships and women with intellectual disabilities
- Authors:
- BURNS Jan, DAVIES Danielle
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 24(4), July 2011, pp.351-360.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The sexual knowledge of people with mild intellectual disabilities has been found to be partial, inaccurate and inconsistent. Previous research has shown that people with intellectual disabilities have tended to hold negative or even blatantly homophobic attitudes towards homosexuality. Holding traditional beliefs about gender roles is predictive with holding negative attitudes towards homosexuality. The aim of this study was to examine attitudes towards homosexuality and gender role beliefs in a group of women with intellectual disabilities. The sample consisted of 27 women with a learning disability who described themselves as heterosexual. Three self-report measures were administered to measure their knowledge of homosexuality, attitudes towards homosexuality and gender role beliefs. The findings showed that the participants had limited knowledge, especially regarding lesbianism, and held prejudicial beliefs. Traditional gender beliefs were also identified and were associated strongly with more negative attitudes towards homosexuality. These findings suggest that education that focuses on the flexibility of gender roles may be beneficial, in addition to an emphasis on developing more positive attitudes towards homosexuality.
Staying strong: taking self advocacy into the future
- Author:
- NATIONAL FORUM OF PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DIFFICULTIES
- Publisher:
- National Forum of People with Learning Difficulties
- Publication year:
- 2011
- Pagination:
- 40p.
- Place of publication:
- Shoreham-by-Sea
Self advocacy groups are led by people with learning disabilities. They work to ensure that people with learning disabilities are treated fairly. This easy read guide aims to help self advocacy groups adapt and change their ways of working, and to ensure they have a plan for their future. It is based on a survey of self-advocacy groups from all over England and provides an overview of how groups are run, what they do and advice on how to plan to stay strong as government funding is reduced. The report includes information on five groups including a group of people with complex needs, an Asian women’s group and a parents’ group.
Recruitment and consent of women with intellectual disabilities in a randomised control trial of a health promotion intervention
- Authors:
- SWAINE J., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55(5), May 2011, pp.474-483.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The markedly worse health of people with intellectual disabilities compared to non-disabled people creates a critical need for evidence-based health promotion interventions. However, there appear to be significant barriers stopping them from participating in research, including those related to recruitment and obtaining informed consent. This study, which describes a procedure for the recruitment and consent of women with intellectual disabilities, is part of a larger US community-based, multi-site randomised controlled trial testing an intervention to promote cervical and breast cancer screening. Of 269 women who participated in information sessions, 203 (75%) enrolled in the study. While women with and without legal guardians consented at about the same rates (83% and 85%, respectively), those with legal guardians enrolled at significantly lower rates (61%) because of lower rates (74%) of guardian consent. The authors conclude that it is possible to recruit community-dwelling women with intellectual disabilities into randomised controlled trials at relatively high participation rates. However recruiting women who have guardians poses additional challenges for researchers.
Intellectual disability and homelessness
- Authors:
- MERCIER C., PICARD S.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55(4), April 2011, pp.441-449.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Poverty has been associated with intellectual disability (ID) as both a risk factor and a consequence. However, little is known about persons with ID whose level of poverty and social isolation has driven them to residential instability. This paper describes the situation of 68 people with ID (mean age 43 years, 63% men) who had been or were homeless in Montreal and were currently in contact with a homeless persons outreach team. The study aims were to describe the characteristics, history and current situation of these persons and to report within-group differences as a function of gender and current residential status. The data were collected from files using an anonymous chart summary. Persons with ID exhibited several related problems such as mental health problems, substance misuse and relationship or family breakdown, which can sometimes mask ID in all but the most vulnerable. Women more often experienced relatively short, as opposed to chronic, homelessness partly because they were also more likely to maintain contact with their family. Chronic homelessness appeared to parallel the number and severity of their other problems. When compared with a previous data the population of homeless persons with ID differed from the overall homeless population in a number of respects. Implications for policy are discussed.
The role of community nurses and residential staff in supporting women with intellectual disability to access breast screening services
- Authors:
- TAGGART L., TRUESDALE-KENNEDY M., MCILFATRICK S.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55(1), January 2011, pp.41-52.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Women with intellectual disability (ID) are living longer and experiencing the same age-related illnesses as the non-ID population, including breast cancer. There is evidence that these women experience a greater number of risk factors for developing breast cancer. Cognitive deficits and communication difficulties mean that they are dependent upon staff to support them to attend screening clinics. This paper investigated how this support is provided. Six focus groups were held with community nurses and residential staff working in the field of ID in Northern Ireland. Many of the participants recognised the risk factors and signs/symptoms of breast cancer; but there were knowledge gaps. Both positive and negative experiences of women with ID attending for breast screening were reported but much of the discussion focused on the latter. Factors inhibiting attendance included; lack of health educational material, negative emotions, attitudes and physical barriers. Breast awareness and visual checks were suggested for women with ID who refused to attend the breast clinics; however this raised issues of informed consent and vulnerability for carers undertaking the checks. The authors highlight the need for a breast awareness programme for women with ID and suggest the development of accessible health education literature.
The impact of a ward-based mindfulness programme on recorded aggression in a medium secure facility for women with learning disabilities
- Authors:
- CHILVERS Jane, THOMAS Cathy, STANBURY Alex
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Learning Disabilities and Offending Behaviour, 2(1), January 2011, pp.27-41.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Mindfulness is the practice of focusing attention effectively and purposefully, in a non-judgmental manner, on current circumstances. It has been increasingly used as a tool for managing a range of difficulties associated with personal suffering, including stress and chronic pain, as well as some aspects of mental disorder. This study aimed to investigate whether the introduction of mindfulness open group sessions would reduce the overall number of aggressive incidents recorded by female patients with learning disabilities in a forensic medium secure psychiatric unit. The participants were all of the 15 patients resident on the ward from October to April 2010. Twice-weekly, 30-minute group sessions were held, and the participants had the option of opting in or out of each session. Proxy measures of institutional aggression, namely the number of observations, physical interventions, and seclusions, were recorded at baseline and at 2 months and 6 months following the introduction of the sessions. Friedman's Analysis of Variance and post-hoc analyses using Wilcoxon's Signed Ranks showed a significant reduction of the 3 measures at 6 months. The potential influence of basic mindfulness practice sessions in reducing aggression is discussed.