Understanding Complex and Challenging Needs
Build empathy for people with cognitive disabilities as you carve out an understanding of the aspects of life they may struggle with. Understand the challenging behaviours that they may show in the face of exclusion and how you can create change.
Your upfront cost: $0
- 27 Jul 2020
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Upon successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Critique the way in which 'complex and challenging needs' are understood within the context of disability practice.
- Appraise the evidence-base for the application of Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) to the needs of individuals with cognitive disability.
- Appraise the significance of different types of attachment in childhood, and how these are established, in order to understand the way adults approach relationships with others.
- Critically evaluate the three different types of organised adult attachment and disorganized attachment to understand their relevance for care relationships between people with intellectual disabilities who are challenging, and parents and staff.
- Critically appraise the concept of Psychologically-Informed Environments (PIE) and Trauma-Informed Care.
- Critically appraise and defend judgements about the contexts in which either positive behaviour support, attachment or the creation of Psychologically-Informed Environments (PIE) are likely to be effective, separately or in combination
- Attachment Theory
- Positive Behaviour Support
- Psychologically Informed Environments
You cannot enrol in this subject if you have successfully completed any of the following subject(s) because they are considered academically equivalent:
- OtherDetails -
1 x 10 hours unscheduled online class per week from week 31 to week 43
3 x 1 hour scheduled online class during semester, from week 31 to week 43
Note: This subject code is a part of the Graduate Certificate in Disability Practice. This subject is available as a postgraduate single subject as DIS508.
The complex support needs of people with cognitive disabilities arise from interplay between multiple factors such as social disadvantage, poor physical and/or mental health, and impaired cognition and communication. Challenging behaviours are exhibited by many people with cognitive disability as a result of their complex support needs. Such behaviours often entail their exclusion from services or the imposition of restrictive practices. In this subject, students will explore behavioural and non-behavioural perspectives on understanding challenging behaviours, and both individual and systemic interventions to create change. Three principal research-based interventions are explored: Positive Behaviour Support, Attachment, and the creation of Psychologically-Informed Environments. Students will be encouraged to master each of these distinct approaches before trying to think about synthesis of these making judgements about which is most appropriate for a person in a particular context.
Support Plan Critique - Students to critique a plan and suggest recommendations to improve it. Annotated Bibliography - Assessment will provide students with solid grounding in attachment through the review of published key works. Comparative Essay - Essay requires students to compare behavioural approaches and explain environmental rather than individual interventions for challenging behaviour. word online form posts - Students participate in moderated online fora throughout the semester (each worth 5%). These 'debates' draw upon case scenarios provided.
- Support Plan Critique (2,000- word equivalent (40%)
- Annotated Bibliography (500-word equivalent) (10%)
- Comparative essay (1,500-word equivalent) (35%)
- 3 X 200 word online forum posts (600 word equivalent (15%)
Textbook information is pending.