An idiographic examination of patient progress in the treatment of dangerous and severe personality disorder: a reliable change index approach

Abstract

A key aim of the dangerous and severe personality disorder (DSPD) project is the assessment of the effectiveness of different treatment approaches with patients usually considered ‘untreatable’, i.e. dangerous offenders with personality disorders. We present outcome analyses for a small pilot sample of patients in the Broadmoor DSPD unit over their first two years of treatment. To assess the effectiveness of the treatment provided within the Broadmoor DSPD pilot unit in terms of risk reduction and clinical indicators of improvement, routine assessment data were collected for each patient on a six-monthly basis. Patient changes were assessed to determine if they were statistically reliable at the individual level using reliable change index analyses. This provides an idiographic assessment of changes for each patient.