Elien Neimeijer

92 Abstract Background: This study examines associations between group climate as perceived by individuals with mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual functioning (MID- BIF) and work climate as experienced by sociotherapists in a secure forensic setting. Methods: The sample of participants consisted of 212 clients and 262 sociotherapists from 58 living groups. Group climate was assessed with the Group Climate Instrument and work climate was measured using the Living Group Work Climate. Structural equa- tion modelling and multilevel analyses were used to analyse the associations between work climate and group climate. Results: When sociotherapists experience more job satisfaction, they experience less negative team functioning. Also,when sociotherapists experience more positive team functioning, less repression was perceived by clients. Perceived workload and negative team functioning by sociotherapists are related to less experienced possibilities for growth by clients. No significant associations were found between the other work climate and group climate dimensions. Conclusions: This study stresses the importance of awareness on parallel processes between work climate and group climate in secure settings for individuals with MID-BIF. Continuous attention must be paid to what teams as well as individual sociotherapists need to be able to do their important work. Introduction Sociotherapists who work with individuals with mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual functioning (MID-BIF; IQ 50 – 85) in a secure forensic treatment setting face an important task. Supporting individuals with MID-BIF and creating a therapeutic group climate is of great importance for effective treatment (Robinson & Craig, 2019; Willets, Mooney, & Blagden, 2014). In order to create a therapeutic group climate, soci- otherapists need to keep a balance between responsivity and reducing risks in order to avert dangerous and harmful situations for themselves, their colleagues and other clients living in the same group (i.e., therapy-security paradox; Inglis, 2010; Jacob, 2012). In secure forensic care settings for people with a MID-BIF, these principles must be inte- grated with an approach, in which emotional, social, cognitive and adaptive functioning of clients are taken into account. This complicates the work of the sociotherapists in fo-