Stressful Social Interactions Experienced by Adults With Mild Intellectual Disability

Abstract

Adults with intellectual disability are vulnerable to stressful social interactions. We determined frequency and severity of various stressful social interactions, identified the social partners in these interactions, and examined the specific interpersonal skill difficulties of 114 adults with mild intellectual disability. Participants' characteristic risk factors for stressful social interactions were also identified. Minor and unintentional negative actions of others had high frequency but low severity of stress. Serious and intentional negative actions of others had a low frequency but high severity of stress. Stressful social interactions with other people who have intellectual disability occurred frequently and had a high severity. Difficulty controlling aggression predicted stressful social interactions. Findings are beneficial to developers of interventions to decrease stressful social interactions.Psychological stress occurs as a result of a person-environment interaction in which individuals appraise a situation as threatening their well-being or self-esteem and as exceeding their resources to deal with the situation (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Perceptions of stress among people with intellectual disability have only recently been documented (Bramston & Bostock, 1994;Bramston & Fogarty, 1995;Bramston, Fogarty, & Cummins, 1999;Cooper & Collacott, 1996;Fogarty, Bramston, & Cummins, 1997). Adults with mild intellectual disability report similar overall rates of stress and perceive stress from the same types of events as does the general population, but they are particularly vulnerable to stressful social interactions (Bramston & Bostock, 1994;Bramston et al., 1999;Fogarty et al., 1997). Adults with mild intellectual disability state that this category of stressful events occurs more frequently and is more stressful when experienced than are other types of negative events (Bramston et al., 1999;Fogarty et al., 1997;Hartley & MacLean, 2005).Given a link between perceptions of stress and psychological distress (e.g., Hartley & MacLean, 2005;Lunsky, 2003), an understanding of the stressful social interactions experienced by adults with mild intellectual disability has implications for improving their psychological well-being. Our purpose in this study was to determine the relation between stressful social interactions and psychological distress, types of stressful social interactions experienced, social partners involved in these interactions, risk factors for these interactions, and the interpersonal skill difficulties contributing to these interactions in adults with mild intellectual disability. This information can be used to design interventions and modify environments to decrease the occurrence of stressful social interactions and, subsequently, improve the psychological well-being of adults with mild intellectual disability. Stressful Social Interactions and Psychological DistressPerceptions of stress are positively related to psychological distress among adults with mild intellectual disabilit...

The relationship between challenging behaviour and anxiety in adults with intellectual disabilities: a literature review

“…; Owen et al . ; Hartley & MacLean ). Poor coping skills in persons with ID, especially a lack of ability to control aggression, influence their capacity to deal with stressful social interactions, which may lead to more symptoms of anxiety and distress (Hartley & MacLean ).…”

“…The complexity is increased even further when other influencing factors associated with both anxiety disorders and CB are considered. Examples of these influencing factors are coping and life events (MacHale & Carey 2002;Sequeira et al 2003;Owen et al 2004;Hartley & MacLean 2009). Poor coping skills in persons with ID, especially a lack of ability to control aggression, influence their capacity to deal with stressful social interactions, which may lead to more symptoms of anxiety and distress (Hartley & MacLean 2009).…”

“…Examples of these influencing factors are coping and life events (MacHale & Carey 2002;Sequeira et al 2003;Owen et al 2004;Hartley & MacLean 2009). Poor coping skills in persons with ID, especially a lack of ability to control aggression, influence their capacity to deal with stressful social interactions, which may lead to more symptoms of anxiety and distress (Hartley & MacLean 2009). Other studies show that adults with ID who have experienced negative life events display more frequent CB, and are at increased risk for anxiety disorder (MacHale & Carey 2002;Sequeira et al 2003;Owen et al 2004).…”

The role of nurses/social workers in using a multidimensional guideline for diagnosis of anxiety and challenging behaviour in people with intellectual disabilities

“…, Hasting et al . , Hartley & MacLean ; ), anxiety is a relatively common phenomenon among this client group.…”

Korelasi Penggunaan Gadget Terhadap Kepuasan Komunikasi Interpersonal Pada Mahasiswa Disabilitas

“…Pada proses akhir, kepuasan komunikasi interpersonal akan dapat menghindarkan mahasiswa tunanetra dan tunarungu dari gejala stres yang diakibatkan dari keterbatasan komunikasi interpersonal. Seperti yang dijelaskan oleh Hartley & MacLean Jr. (2009), bahwa orang dengan keterbatasan rentan mengalami stres karena tidak lancarnya komunikasi interpersonal yang terjadi. Penggunaan gadget membantu mahasiswa tunanetra dan tunarungu untuk mengatasi masalah ketidaklancaran ini, sehingga mahasiswa tersebut mencapai kepuasan komunikasi interpersonal dan akhirnya terhindar dari stres.…”