Supporting Organisation: Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (HPFT)
About Song's fellowship project
Title: Dialectical Behaviour Therapy for Emotional Dysregulation in Autistic Adults without Intellectual Disability: A Systematic Review
Autistic adults without intellectual disability often experience emotional dysregulation, anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicidality. Yet post-diagnosis NHS support remains inconsistent, with many adults unable to access targeted interventions — a gap that continues to widen as diagnosis rates rise.
Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) was originally developed for people experiencing recurrent self-harm and emotional instability. It teaches four skills: managing emotions, tolerating distress, relating to others, and mindfulness. These closely mirror the difficulties many autistic adults describe, and its structured, predictable format may particularly suit autistic thinking styles. However, the existing evidence for DBT in this population is limited, heterogeneous, and often blurred by studies that mix participants from multiple clinical groups.
This review addresses that gap by evaluating whether DBT reduces emotional dysregulation in autistic adults without intellectual disability, compared with usual care. It also examines effects on suicidality, self-harm, mood, and quality of life, as well as its feasibility and acceptability for this group.
By consolidating this evidence, the review aims to inform a preventative NHS pathway for autistic adults, thus reducing crisis presentations of self-harm and suicidality. This directly supports the shift outlined in the Darzi report and NHS 10 Year Health Plan: from treatment to prevention, and from hospital to community care.
Contact Song: Song.tang@nhs.net