Brief Report: Evaluating the Impact of Behavioural Concerns in Individuals With Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities.
Severe behaviour in youth with IDD routinely injures people, breaks property, and triggers 911 calls—document these harms to win services.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Scheithauer et al. (2025) asked caregivers to list the real-world harm caused by severe behaviour. The team worked with youth who had intellectual or developmental disabilities. They used a short caregiver interview to count injuries, broken items, and 911 calls.
What they found
Seventy-three percent of caregivers said the child’s behaviour had hurt someone. Sixty-four percent saw property damage. One in nine families had to call emergency services. These numbers show why severe behaviour is a safety issue, not just a learning problem.
How this fits with other research
Allen et al. (2001) saw the same group of kids twenty-four years earlier. They found daily aggression was common and most reactive strategies were made up on the spot. Mindy et al. now show the real damage those improvised moments can cause.
Lowe et al. (1995) showed that caregivers label certain behaviours as severe no matter how often they happen. Mindy et al. give those labels teeth by listing the broken furniture, bruises, and ambulance rides that follow.
O'Dwyer et al. (2018) counted problem behaviour in older Irish adults with ID and got 53%. Mindy et al. shift the lens to youth and focus on harm, not just frequency. Together they show the lifespan punch of severe behaviour.
Why it matters
You now have hard data to show funders why a behaviour plan is medically necessary. Add the three-question harm checklist to your intake. When 73% of families already report injury, you can justify crisis funding, respite hours, or a rapid FBA before the next broken wall or ER visit.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Behavioural concerns, such as aggression and self-injury, are common among youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Additional research is needed to further explore the specific ways in which these types of behaviour impact individuals and their families. METHODS: Caregivers seeking treatment for their child's behavioural concerns completed an interview regarding the negative impact of their child's behaviour related to (a) physical harm to self or others, (b) property damage, (c) structural modifications, (d) situational avoidance and (e) reactive measures. We reviewed outcomes of these interviews to report on the prevalence of various negative impacts in this clinical sample. RESULTS: Most caregivers reported at least some physical harm (72.99%), property damage (63.99%) and preventative measures such as avoiding removing preferred items or activities (72.35%). Some caregivers endorsed severe negative impacts, such as the need for emergency services (10.61%) or residential placements (5.14%). CONCLUSIONS: Caregivers in this clinical sample consistently endorsed negative impacts resulting from behavioural concerns. This information is crucial in advocating for additional services for this high-need population, and the interview used to gather this information may be a helpful tool to guide future research and clinical work.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2025 · doi:10.1111/jir.13240