Meeting Emotional Needs in Intellectual Disability : The Developmental Approach

Help adults with intellectual disabilities improve their mental health and quality of life

Using a developmental perspective, the authors offer a new, integrated model for supporting people with intellectual disability (ID). This concept builds upon recent advances in attachment-informed approaches, by drawing upon a broader understanding of the social, emotional, and cognitive competencies of people with ID, which is grounded in developmental neuroscience and psychology. The book explores in detail how challenging behaviour and mental health difficulties in people with ID arise when their basic emotional needs are not being met by those in the environment. Using individually tailored interventions, which complement existing models of care, practitioners can help to facilitate maturational processes and reduce behaviour that is challenging to others. As a result, the “fit” of a person within his or her individual environment can be improved. Case examples throughout the book illuminate how this approach works by targeting interventions towards the person’s stage of emotional development.This book will be of interest to a wide range of professionals working with people with ID, including: clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, occupational therapists, learning disability nurses, speech and language therapists, and teachers in special education settings, as well as parents and caregivers.