Full Description
This practical guide provides clinicians with evidence-based tools and strategies to assess and treat children and adolescents with serious behavior problems who exhibit limited prosocial emotions (LPEs).
Extreme behavior problems in youth, while rare overall, have an outsized impact. These youth can cause tremendous harm to themselves, their peers, and even adults while also presenting as callous, unemotional, unremorseful, and unconcerned about the consequences of their actions. Without intervention, these children face increased risks of justice system involvement, school dropout, and serious mental health issues such as depression, suicidal ideation, and substance abuse that can continue into adulthood.
Youth with serious conduct problems pose distinct challenges for mental health professionals, particularly when accompanied by LPEs. To support clinicians, the authors offer a comprehensive framework for engaging families, conducting specialized assessments, and delivering targeted treatment. Readers will learn how to use tools such as the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits and the Clinical Assessment of Prosocial Emotions to evaluate the presence of LPE specifier, as defined by the DSM and the ICD. The book also presents multiple promising treatment methods, with a particular focus on an adapted version of parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) designed specifically for young children with callous-unemotional traits.
A detailed case example follows a 5-year-old Aboriginal boy and his mother, illustrating the full course of assessment, parent engagement, and intervention in the treatment of severe conduct problems with limited prosocial emotions.
Contents
Dedications
An Introduction to Assessing and Treating Children and Adolescents With Disruptive Behavior Disorders Who Lack Empathy and Guilt
Part I. Overview of the Limited Prosocial Emotions Specifier and Its Significance
Chapter 1. An Overview of Research on Diagnosing Limited Prosocial Emotions in Children and Adolescents
Chapter 2. Clinically Important Differences Between Children with Limited Prosocial Emotions and Other Children with Conduct Problems
Chapter 3. Distinct Emotional, Cognitive, and Social Characteristics of Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Part II. Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis of Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Chapter 4. General Considerations in the Assessment of Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Chapter 5. Using the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits in Clinical Assessments of the Limited Prosocial Emotions Specifier
Chapter 6. Using the Clinical Assessment of Prosocial Emotions (CAPE) in Clinical Assessments of the Limited Prosocial Emotions Specifier
Part III. Treating Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Chapter 7. An Overview of Treatments That Work for Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Chapter 8. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for Callous-Unemotional Traits (PCIT-CU)
Chapter 9. Illustrative Clinical Case Study Involving Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for Callous-Unemotional Traits (PCIT-CU)
Chapter 10. Expanding the Reach of Treatments for Children and Adolescents with Limited Prosocial Emotions
Part VI. Future Directions for Research and Practice
Chapter 11. A Roadmap for the Future of Assessing and Treating Children and Adolescents With Limited Prosocial Emotions
Appendix A. QR Codes for Accessing Various Assessment Tools, Treatment Manuals, and
References
Index
About the Authors
