Reactive Attachment Disorder - uninhibited type

Specialties Psychiatric

Published

Can anyone recommend a good resource about therapeutic approaches to children with RAD? I'm dealing with both types, primarily uninhibited, in a new job as a psychiatric nurse. I love my job so far, but I find myself missing a lot of information and playing it by ear.

Internet, book, whatever would be really appreciated. Thanks.

1) Circle of Security is a new, researched therapy for younger children with attachment problems.

http://www.circleofsecurity.org/index.html

2) Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT). This has a good evidence basis and has been in use for a while: http://www.phhp.ufl.edu/~seyberg/>http://www.phhp.ufl.edu/~seyberg/

References for PCIT:

Herschell, A., Calzada, E., Eyberg, S.M., & McNeil, C.B. (2002). Parent-child interaction therapy: New directions in research. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 9, 9-16.

Brestan, E.V., & Eyberg, S.M. (1998). Effective psychosocial treatments for children and adolescents with disruptive behavior disorders: 29 years, 82 studies, and 5272 kids. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 27, 179-188.

Brinkmeyer, M., & Eyberg, S.M. (2003). Parent-child interaction therapy for oppositional children. In A.E. Kazdin & J.R. Weisz (Eds.). Evidence-based psychotherapies for children and adolescents (pp. 204-223). New York: Guilford.

Foote, R., Schuhmann, E., Jones, M., & Eyberg, S.M. (1998). Parent-child interaction therapy: A guide for clinicians. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry,3, 361-373.

Jones, M.L., Eyberg, S.M., Adams, C.D., & Boggs, S.R. (1998). Treatment acceptability of behavioral interventions for children: An assessment by mothers of children with disruptive behavior disorders. Children & Family Behavior Therapy, 20, 15-26.

Schoenfield, L., & Eyberg, S.M. (2005). Parent management training. In G.P. Koocher, J.C. Norcross, & S.S. Hill (Eds.). Psychologist‚s Desk Reference (2nd ed). New York: Oxford University Press. [this one talks about Kazdin's model of PMT]

A big problem these days is the use of a bogus list of signs to diagnose RAD. It is a long laundry list of signs that includes lack of eye contact, manipulative and violent behaviors, lack of conscience, obsession with blood/gore, speech problems, and anything else you can think of. This diagnostic criteria is only used by an abusive therapy cult called "Attachment Therapy/Parenting." (See APSAC's journal "Child Maltreatment"

Feb 2006; http://web.archive.org/web/20070917165436/http://www.attachmentparenting.org/pdf/taskforcepaper.pdf).

I also recommend the book "Understanding Attachment" by Jean Mercer, Ph.D. (Praeger), which would also be good for parents.

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