Page 15 - Post-traumatic stress disorder in adults with mild intellectual disability: Screening, assessment, and brief intensive EMDR therapy

General introduction
The purpose of this dissertation is to improve the identification, diagnostic
assessment, and treatment of PTSD in adults with MID-BIF. This chapter
provides an introduction to the four studies of this dissertation. It starts
by a description and definition of (individuals with) MID-BIF and PTSD. It
then focuses on PTSD in individuals with MID-BIF, addressing the increased
risk, frequent under-recognition, and current challenges in diagnostic
assessment and screening. The chapter continues with an overview of
PTSD treatments for adults with MID-BIF, including EMDR therapy and
intensive trauma-focused treatment. Finally, it presents the aims and
outline of this dissertation.
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Individuals with mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual
functioning
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fifth
Edition, Text Revision (DSM-5-TR; American Psychiatric Association [APA],
2022) and the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental
Disabilities (AAIDD; Schalock et al., 2021), intellectual disability (ID) is
characterised by deficits in intellectual functioning, including reasoning,
problem-solving, planning, abstract thinking, judgement, academic
learning, and learning from experience, as confirmed by both clinical
assessment and standardised tests of intelligence. Additionally, deficits in
adaptive functioning must significantly impair an individual’s ability to meet
developmental and sociocultural standards for personal independence and
social responsibility. These deficits must be present in at least one of the
three domains of adaptive functioning: the conceptual domain (e.g., skills in
memory, language, reading, writing, mathematical reasoning, and practical
knowledge); the social domain (e.g., interpersonal communication, social
judgment, and the ability to form and maintain relationships); and the
practical domain (e.g., personal care, daily living skills, and independent
functioning). Deficits in adaptive and intellectual functioning must have
their onset during the developmental period of an individual.
Although the DSM-5-TR no longer defines ID based on strict IQ thresholds,
IQ ranges are still commonly used in clinical practice and research
contexts to describe ID levels associated with different degrees of severity.
Individuals with MID are generally considered to have IQ scores between
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