Self injurious behaviour is usually defined as behaviour that directly results in physical harm to an individual and includes such behaviours as hand biting, head slapping, picking at skin, gouging or striking the body or eating inedible material. In addition, researchers have begun to include display of repetitive movements even though they may not immediately [read the full story…]
Estimates for the prevalence of self injurious behaviour vary from 4% to 10% as a result of case definition differences and study methodologies. However, such behaviours have a major impact of the quality of life of those involved and present challenges to family members and paid carers. There is some evidence emerging that suggests that [read the full story…]
Community based studies have suggested that self injury in people with learning disabilities occurs in approximately 3% of adults living in community settings, show self-injury, often as a chronic condition for those with severe self injury. For some individuals, protective devices have been used, including padding, helmets, gloves and arm splints. In this case study, [read the full story…]
There is a limited literature about self harm in people with learning disabilities. There are some qualitative studies, but mostly relating to forensic services. The researchers in this study were interested in the extent to which the beliefs that staff hold about self-harm influence their response to the behaviour. The researchers used Q-methodology a research [read the full story…]
This study set out to look at associations between psychiatric disorders in people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviours. The study used a large sample and controlled for sex, age, autism and degree of learning disability. The researchers used data from 47% of all people with learning disabilities who were known to and receiving services [read the full story…]
Physical factors can be a cause of some challenging behaviours in people with learning disabilities and this systematic review set out to determine what these conditions might be. The search covered the period 1990 and 2008and identified 45 studies. These looked at general medical conditions, motor impairment, epilepsy, sensory impairment, gastrointestinal disease, sleep disorders, dementia [read the full story…]
Recognising that self injurious behaviour in people with profound and multiple disabilities usually has important negative consequences for people concerned, this meta-analysis set out to examine the effectiveness of the treatments currently being offered. The authors looked at single-case studies which investigated non-aversive, non-intrusive forms of reinforcement, combining these using hierarchical linear models. They discovered [read the full story…]
An examination of the quality of life and changes in behaviour for a cohort of 49 people with intellectual disabilities and self injurious behaviour (SIB) over time. 84% of the sample continued to self-injure nearly 20 years on, and whilst a number of people had moved from hospital in the period their SIB had not reduced. More [read the full story…]
