Anger Treatment for People with Developmental Disabilities

Anger and aggression are prevalent problems among people with developmental disabilities and constitute primary reasons for them to be admitted and re-admitted to institutions. They are also a key reason for the prescribing of behaviour control and anti-psychotic medication to this client group. ‘It represents the state of the art in anger treatment for individuals with developmental disabilities and I would expect to see a significant effect from this text on the development of treatment services.’ Bill Lindsay, The State Hospital, Carstairs; NHS Tayside and University of Abertay, Dundee Anger and aggression are prevalent problems among people with developmental disabilities and constitute primary reasons for them to be admitted and re-admitted to institutions. They are also a key reason for the prescribing of behaviour control and anti-psychotic medication to this client group. Stimulated by growing research in this area, mental health and criminal justice professionals have begun to see the benefits of anger assessment and cognitive-behavioural anger treatment for people with developmental disabilities. There is no prior text to guide anger treatment provision to this client group. This text presents a manual-guided cognitive-behavioural anger treatment protocol, grounded in a solid theoretical framework and empirical evidence for its efficacy in clinical practice. The assessment and treatment approach is designed to engage and motivate patients with recurrent and deep-rooted anger problems and their manifestation in serious aggressive behaviour. Accompanying the treatment protocol are a number of worksheets, handouts and exercise sheets for clinicians and clients, which can be accessed online. This is a must-have resource for practitioners and clinicians in the developmental disability and forensic fields (psychologists, nurses, occupational therapists and psychiatrists), across a range of settings, such as NHS, independent health provider, social care and criminal justice sectors. It will also be of interest to academics and trainees in the developmental disability and forensic fields. Anger and aggression are prevalent problems among people with developmental disabilities and constitute primary reasons for them to be admitted and re-admitted to institutions. They are also a key reason for the prescribing of behaviour control and anti-psychotic medication to this client group. Stimulated by growing research in this area, mental health and criminal justice professionals have begun to see the benefits of anger assessment and cognitive-behavioural anger treatment for people with developmental disabilities. There is no prior text to guide anger treatment provision to this client group. This text presents a manual-guided cognitive-behavioural anger treatment protocol, grounded in a solid theoretical framework and empirical evidence for its efficacy in clinical practice. The assessment and treatment approach is designed to engage and motivate patients with recurrent and deep-rooted anger problems and their manifestation in serious aggressive behaviour. Accompanying the treatment protocol are a number of worksheets, handouts, and exercise sheets for clinicians and clients that can be accessed online.