A survey of self-restraint, self-injury, and other maladaptive behaviors in an institutionalized retarded population

Psychologists of a state school for mentally retarded persons were surveyed to assess the prevalence of self-restraint, self-injurious behavior (SIB), and other maladaptive behaviors for clients in their facility. Results indicated that almost all clients reliably identified as engaging in self-restraint also engaged in self-injurious behavior while other maladaptive behaviors for self-restraining clients occurred much less frequently. The occurrence of SIB in the school's population was substantially lower than in the self-restraining population. Results are discussed in terms of future research investigating a functional relationship between self-restraint and SIB. Clinical implications for the use of self-restraint as an intervention for SIB also are discussed.