Abstract
Events like the tragedy at Columbine High School and the terrorists attacks on New York City in 2001 have highlighted the need for mental health practitioners to become familiar with interventions that are designed to assist young people who have survived extremely stressful events. Mental health professionals often see people who have experienced car accidents, severe abuse, rape, or other victimization, as well as survivors of natural and man-made disasters during the first critical stages of the recovery period. This article describes the process of critical incident de-briefing and provides a step-by-step primer for its application. The process is short-term (four sessions or less) and provides an intervention designed to reduce the frequency and severity of post-traumatic stress symptoms. Adolescents are particularly at risk because of issues surrounding identity formation, self- esteem, and developmental differences in coping mechanisms. Therefore, those who work with an adolescent cohort should be familiar with debriefing methods and how to apply them to the teenager.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allen, J. (1995). Coping With Trauma. American Psychiatric Publishing, Arlington, VA.
Bell, J.L. (Jan. 1995). Traumatic event debriefing: Service delivery designs and the role of social work. Social Work.40. 36–43.
Bradley, G. and Matsukis, P. (2000). Identity Status and Youth Recklessness. Youth Studies Australia. 19:4. 48–54.
Brom, D., Kleber, R.J., & Hoffman, M.C. (1993). Victims of Traffic Accidents: Incidence and Prevention of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 49:2, 131–140.
Calhoun, K. & Atkeson, B. (1991). The Treatment of Rape Victims: Facilitating Psychosocial Adjustment. Pergamon Press, Oxford, UK.
Chapman, P and Mullis, R. (1999). Adolescent Coping Strategies and Self Esteem. Child Study Journal.29:1, 69–78.
Choy, T. & Bosset, F. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: An Overview (1992). Canadian Journal of Psychiatry.37:8, 578–583.
Cohen, J. (1998 ). Practice parameters for the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.37, 245–265.
Cuffee, P., Addy, L. & Garrison, Z. (1998). Prevalence of PTSD in a community sample of older adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.37, 147–154.
DeSilva, P. (1997). Treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder—A Handbook and Practice Manual for Therapy. Behaviour Research and Therapy. 35:9, 884–885.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th Edition (1995). American Psychiatric Publishing, Arlington, VA.
Dyregrov, A. (1989). Caring For Helpers In Disaster Situations: Psychological Debriefing. Disaster Management, 2:1, 25–29.
Erikson, E.H. (1968). Identity: Youth and Crisis. New York: W.W. Norton and Company.
Kilpatrick, K. & Williams, L. Post-traumatic Stress Disorder In Child Witness to Domestic Violence (1997). American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 67:4, 639–644.
Kerpelman, J. and Pittman, J. (1997). Towards a Microprocess Perspective on Adolescent Identity Development: An Identity Control Theory Approach. Journal of Adolescent Research, l. 12:1. 325–347.
Ho, M.K. (1992). Minority children and adolescents in therapy.Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
King, L., King, D., Fairbank, J., Keane, T., & Adams, G. (1998). The Culture of Survivors: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Memory. History and Memory 10:1, 420–434.
Leenaars, A.A. & Wenckstern, S. (June 1998). Principles of post-intervention: applications to suicide and trauma in schools. Death Studies. 22: 4 , 357–391 .
Lundin, T. (1994). The Treatment of Acute Trauma: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Prevention. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 17:2, 385–391.
Manson, S., The Wounded Spirit: A Cultural Formulation of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder(1996). Medicine and Psychiatry, 20:4, 489–498.
Meeks, J. & Bernet, W. (1990) The Fragile Alliance, 4th Edition. Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, FL.
Mitchell, J.T. (1983). When Disaster Strikes. The Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Process. Journal of Emergency Medical Services, 8, 36–39.
Nader, K.O. (1989). Childhood post-traumatic stress reaction: A response to violence. Social Work Abstracts.
O'Brien, L. Traumatic Events and Mental Health (1998). Cambridge University Press, UK.
Perry, B.D. (2000). Violence and Children: How Persisting Fear Can Alter the Developing Child's Brain. The Child Trauma Academy. www.ChildTrauma.org
Peterson, K. & Schwarz, R. (1990) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A Clinician's Guide. Plenum Press.
Printz, B., Shermis, M. and Webb, P. (1999) Stress Buffering Factors Related to Adolescent Coping: A Path Analysis. Adolescence 34:136 pp 715–735.
Raphael, B. Meldrum, L., & McFarlane, A. (1995). Does Debriefing After Psychological Trauma Work? British Medical Journal, 310, 1479–1480.
Silva, R.R., Alpert, M. & Munoz, D.M. (Aug. 2000). Stress and vulnerability to posttraumatic stress disorders in children and adolescents. The American Journal of Psychiatry. 157:8, 1229–1235.
Tarrier, N. (1995). Psychological Morbidity In Adult Burns Patients: Prevalence and Treatment. Journal of Mental Health, 4:1, 51–62.
Robinson, R.C. & Mitchell, J.T. (1993). Evaluation of Psychological Debriefings. Journal of Traumatic Stress6, 367–382.
Schwartz, E. & Perry, B. (1994). The Post-Traumatic Response in Children and Adolescents. Psychiatric Clinics of North America 17:2 311–326.
Wolf, M. & Mosnaim, A. (eds.) (1990). Post-traumatic Stress Disorders. American Psychiatric Publishing, Arlington, VA.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kirk, A.B., Madden, L.L. Trauma Related Critical Incident Debriefing for Adolescents. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal 20, 123–134 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022816731082
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022816731082