Behavioural Versus Drug Based Treatments for Institutionalised, Developmentally Delayed Individuals Exhibiting Self-Injurious Behaviour

Behavioural Versus Drug Based Treatments for Institutionalised, Developmentally Delayed Individuals Exhibiting Self-Injurious Behaviour

  • Submitted By: jods19
  • Date Submitted: 11/16/2010 4:08 PM
  • Category: Psychology
  • Words: 2367
  • Page: 10
  • Views: 536

Behavioural Versus Drug Based Treatments For Institutionalised, Developmentally Delayed Individuals Exhibiting Self-Injurious Behaviour

Self-Injurious behaviour (SIB) can be defined simply as any deliberate or direct harm an individual inflicts upon their own body without suicidal intent (Winchel & Stanley, 1991). It has been recorded that the prevalence of SIB in individuals with moderate to severe developmental delay (or mental retardation) in institutions ranges from 7% to 23% (Kahng, Iwata & Lewin, 2002) with the behaviour including slapping, biting, punching, digging and gouging (Powers, 2005). For a problem with such high prevalence rates there is rather little evidence to support a preferred treatment for SIB. The main areas of treatment for self-injurious behaviour in individuals with a developmental delay are behavioural and pharmacological. Both are used in institutional settings to help address the effects of self-injurious behaviour; however there are discrepancies between them in terms of the accuracy and reliability of the outcomes; enforceability and safety; cost and duration and increases or decreases in the suitable behaviour of the individuals. The evaluation of these treatments and their efficiency should help to clarify the appropriate program to use in the institutional situation in relation to individuals with a moderate to severe developmental delay expressing self-injurious behaviour.
Behavioural treatments seek to relinquish the effects of self-injurious behaviour by replacing or teaching the individual appropriate levels of behaviour. This is most commonly done by operant behaviour treatment which includes three areas; reinforcement, punishment and extinction (Lutz & Meyer, 2008). Pharmacological based treatments are aimed at improving the behaviour of persons with self-injurious behaviour. Some of the drugs administered in this treatment include antidepressants, lithium, beta blockers, tranquilizers and antipsychotics...

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