A Scoping Literature Review on Compassion-Focused Therapy for Individuals with Intellectual Disability

Individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) are at a higher risk of shame and self-criticism and tend to make downward social comparisons. Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) is commonly used to address these issues in the general population, however, information on the adaptability and effectiveness of CFT for individuals with ID is limited. Thus, we conducted a scoping review of studies on CFT for individuals with ID, to accumulate and consolidate the information and provide a basis for future studies to further develop, alter, and implement CFT for individuals with ID. To conduct this review, we searched eight databases and included descriptive studies, reviews, and empirical peer-reviewed English and Dutch studies. We focused on ID and also included concurrent visual and intellectual disabilities, compassion-focused therapy, compassion, shame, self-criticism, and social comparison. Seven articles were included in the review. We found that CFT can be adapted for individuals with ID and can effectively reduce self-criticism and downwards social comparison. Thus, CFT can promote the well-being of individuals with ID. However, the methodologies of these studies had several limitations, for example, the lack of standardized instruments or protocols for individual or group therapy. While CFT is adaptable and clinically relevant for individuals with ID, its limitations need to be addressed in future studies. In this review, we highlighted and elaborated on the limitations of the research conducted and provided suggestions for the next steps in the field. We provided an overview of the current studies on CFT and ID and highlighted their positive therapeutic effects. Future studies should design robust protocols through collaborations between clinicians and researchers to provide clients with appropriate support and determine the clinical and statistical significance of CFT.