Holding Therapy and Autism Ranking:

Future Research

Summary of Existing Research

There is no high quality research evidence to suggest that holding therapy is effective as a treatment for autistic people.

There have been numerous accounts of the damage caused to autistic people or with other conditions.

Recommendations for Future Research

Although holding therapy was first introduced as an intervention in the 1980‘s there is still little evidence to support its value for autistic people.

Many anecdotal reports from individuals subjected to this intervention suggest that that there is a significant risk of physical and emotional harm.

Consequently we believe that further research into this intervention would pose serious ethical issues and should not be undertaken.

Updated

17 Jun 2022

Last Review

01 Oct 2016

Next Review

01 Feb 2023