Citation

Ascienzo S, Sprang G, Royse D. J. Child Adolesc. Trauma 2022; 15(3): 741-753.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s40653-021-00431-4

PMID

35958719

PMCID

PMC9360376

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to better understand how youth with poly-trauma histories appraise and make meaning of their traumatic experiences within the trauma narrative and processing components of Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), and to explore the results of the meaning-making process. Thematic analysis was employed to explore the trauma narratives of youth (N = 16) ages 8 - 16 that were created during TF-CBT. Participants experienced a mean of 5.38 types of trauma that predominantly included various forms of child maltreatment. With regard to how youth appraise and interpret their traumatic experiences, four themes emerged, including I Am Not Safe, which denotes a lack of physical and psychological safety; It's My Fault, which symbolizes misattributions of responsibility; I Am Changed, which captures alterations in systems of meaning; and Why Did This Happen to Me?, which denotes the struggle to comprehend why the traumatic events occurred and their significance. With regard to the products of the meaning-making process, three themes emerged, including Now I Know, which denotes reappraisals; I Am Safe/r, which signifies increases in perceptions of safety, and I Can Do It, which includes the participant's perceptions of growth.

RESULTS from this study provide a deeper understanding of youth's experiences during these components of treatment, and illuminate the meaning-making process.

FINDINGS can help guide clinical-decision making, and highlight the importance of explicitly attending to specific components of the meaning-making process during trauma narration and processing.

Language: en

Keywords

Youth; Treatment; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Cognitive processing; Trauma narrative; Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy