Third‐wave therapies and adults with intellectual disabilities: A systematic review

Abstract

Background Third‐wave therapies appear to produce positive outcomes for people without intellectual disabilities. This systematic review aimed to establish which third‐wave therapies have been adapted for adults with intellectual disabilities and whether they produced positive outcomes. Method Four databases were searched systematically (PsycINFO, Web of Science, MEDLINE and PubMed), yielding 1,395 results. Twenty studies (N = 109) met the present review's inclusion/exclusion criteria. Results Included studies used mindfulness‐based approaches, dialectical behaviour therapy, compassion focused therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy. Due to considerable heterogeneity in the designs and outcome measures used, a meta‐analysis was not possible. Conclusions Evidence indicated that third‐wave therapies improved mental health symptoms for some and improved challenging/offending behaviour, smoking and mindfulness/acceptance skills for most. These findings must be interpreted with caution due to the low methodological quality of included studies. Future research should build on the current evidence base, using scientifically rigorous designs and standardized measures.

eHealth in the support of people with mild intellectual disability in daily life: A systematic review

“…As this review included studies with a mixture of single‐case and group designs, a quality appraisal tool specifically designed to assess both designs was required. Therefore, in line with previous systematic reviews focusing on people with intellectual disability (e.g., McNair, Woodrow, & Hare, 2017; Patterson, Williams, & Jones, 2019), the Evaluative Method for Determining Evidence‐Based Practice (EMDEBP) (Reichow, Volkmar, & Cicchetti, 2008) was used. Although this tool uses different criteria for single‐case and group designs, both types of studies are evaluated on primary quality indicators (e.g., participant characteristics and visual analysis) and secondary quality indicators (e.g., interobserver agreement and fidelity).…”

Empirically supported psychological treatments: The challenges of comorbid psychiatric and behavioral disorders in people with intellectual disability

“…Patterson et al [ 71 ] highlighted several important findings in their recent review of third-generation therapies for adults with ID. First, only one of the 20 studies that met the inclusion criteria was a randomized controlled trial; the others were single case studies or single group designs with pre- and post-test evaluation.…”

Music Therapy Interventions for Stress Reduction in Adults With Mild Intellectual Disabilities: Perspectives From Clinical Practice

“…Studies have shown that behavioral activation strategies alone, such as roleplay exercises, resulted in the same outcome as the full cognitive therapy package (Cuijpers et al, 2007;Hamelin et al, 2013;Didden et al, 2016). The cognitive-behavioral approach often results in patients being able to recognize that their thinking is not logical, but they do not feel emotionally different afterward (Patterson et al, 2019). This lack of emotional address suggests the need for the further development of interventions based on experiential approaches to intervention, including those that occur within music therapy processes.…”