Psychomotor therapy for anger and aggression in mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual functioning: an Intervention Mapping approach

Abstract

Difficulties with anger regulation in individuals with mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual functioning (MID-BIF) are often associated with aggressive behaviour. Psychomotor therapy (PMT), a mind-body intervention often applied in Dutch facilities for this target group, uses body awareness and physical activities as a medium to learn how to gain control over one’s anger and reduce aggressive behaviour. With Intervention Mapping as a framework, 17 Dutch psychomotor therapists were asked to describe their PMT programme to investigate its content and coherence. Results suggested that interoceptive awareness (IA) and adaptive coping skills (ACS) are key elements of the PMT programmes. The theoretical basis of the PMT programmes is however limited and specific instruments for evaluating PMT are not available yet, especially for IA. Psychomotor therapists would gain from a well-described PMT programme. Future research is warranted on IA, and specific instruments need to be developed and validated for this target group.