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Protocol for a Trauma-Based Psychoeducational Group Intervention to Decrease Risk-Taking, Reenactment, and Further Violence Exposure: Application to the Public High School Setting

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Journal of Child and Adolescent Group Therapy

Abstract

On the basis of clinical experience with traumatized adolescents, the authors developed a psychoeducational group intervention that educates participants about trauma with the goal of minimizing their propensity toward reenactment and risk-taking behavior that exposes them to additional trauma. A pilot study with a community population showed promising results: traumatized high-school students' learning about trauma in a psychoeducational group related to healthier attitudes toward risk-taking behaviors. Encouraged by these preliminary findings, the authors developed a more refined 12-session protocol. Each session includes a combination of trauma-related topics and exercises intended to build skills in the areas of self-regulation, empathy, and interpersonal problem-solving. This paper presents a session-by-session description illustrated with clinical examples and concludes with a plan for further program evaluation and our clinical impressions of its effectiveness.

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Glodich, A., Allen, J.G. & Arnold, L. Protocol for a Trauma-Based Psychoeducational Group Intervention to Decrease Risk-Taking, Reenactment, and Further Violence Exposure: Application to the Public High School Setting. Journal of Child and Adolescent Group Therapy 11, 87–107 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1014745915141

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