Single-case experimental design intervention for inappropriate sexualised behaviour in adolescent traumatic brain injury.

PURPOSE: This study develops the evidence-base of interventions for inappropriate sexualised behaviour following brain injury involving adolescents. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We describe a Single-Case Multiple Baseline Design intervention of Positive Behavioural Support (PBS) across settings. It involves a 16 year old adolescent who had a severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and presented with sexualised talk and touch. PBS may potentially be a successful intervention to remediate this. The aim of the article was to determine whether PBS could reduce the frequency and impact of the sexualised behaviour in a variety of his key daily settings. Visual and quantitative analyses were completed before and after the introduction of the PBS intervention within home and school settings. RESULTS: Findings showed reduction in the frequency of sexualised talk and touch alongside subjective impact ratings in the home. Downward trends were encouraging in the school settings, but demonstrated smaller effects than home. The Overt Behaviour Scale showed a reduction in overall severity and the impact on others. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows the promising impact on behaviour of introducing the PBS intervention within the home and school settings to support positive clinical change evidenced in the reduction in target behaviours and subjective response for caregivers.

Positive Behavioural Support is an effective intervention for managing inappropriate sexualised behaviour in a young person with a traumatic brain injury.Positive Behavioural Support can improve the subjective experience of the young person and their caregivers in parallel to managing behaviour.Single Case Experimental Design can be utilised across care and home settings for measuring change in person-centred interventions.

Reflections on the physical, executive developmental and systems applied framework in child neuropsychological rehabilitation.

This paper describes the influence of the Physical, Executive, Developmental and Systems (PEDS) framework on the delivery of community-based child neuropsychological rehabilitation and how it has been enhanced by the proliferation of neuroscientific, neuropsychological and psychosocial research and evidence-base in childhood brain injury and rehabilitation over the past decade. The paper signposts to some of the key models, theories and concepts currently shaping service delivery. Application of the PEDS framework in a clinical case is described.

Neuroticism, extraversion, life events and depression. The Cardiff Depression Study.

BACKGROUND: Certain personality traits may mediate the relationship between familiality and adversity in causing depression. AIMS: To examine whether the neuroticism and extraversion scales of the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) represent enduring traits underlying the vulnerability to respond to adversity by developing depressive episodes. METHOD: A total of 108 subjects with depression and their siblings were compared with 105 healthy control subjects and their siblings. All were interviewed using the Schedules for the Clinical Assessment of Neuropsychiatry and the Life Events and Difficulties Schedule. Subjects also completed the EPI. RESULTS: Both neuroticism and extraversion were familial and correlated with mood and life event measures. There were no differences on either measure between the never-depressed siblings of probands with depression and controls. Regression analyses showed that the major influence on neuroticism was current mood. CONCLUSIONS: Neither extraversion nor neuroticism measures trait vulnerability to depression, and neuroticism scores mainly reflect symptoms of depression.