Caregiver Maltreatment History and Treatment Response Following an Intensive Emotion Focused Family Therapy Workshop

Clin Psychol Psychother. 2022 Apr 4. doi: 10.1002/cpp.2739. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThis single-arm, repeated measures study investigated the impact caregiver trauma history may have on treatment response following an intensive, 2-day Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) caregiver workshop. Caregivers (n = 243) completed questionnaires regarding their child's emotion regulation and clinical symptoms, as well as their own childhood trauma history (i.e., exposure to various forms of child maltreatment), caregiver self-efficacy, and caregiver blocks (e.g., fears) to support their child's treatment and recovery. Questionnaires were administered prior to and immediately following the workshop, and again 4-, 8- and 12-months later. At baseline, caregivers who reported experiences of childhood maltreatment demonstrated more blocks compared to caregivers who did not (B = 6.35, SE = 2.62, p <.05). Results indicated that caregivers with and without maltreatment histories reported similar, significant gains in their child's total difficulties (B = .64, SE = .41, p = .12) and emotional negativity and lability (B = .51, SE = .48, p = .29) at 12-months post-workshop. Caregivers with maltreatment histories reported greater improvements in caregiver blocks (B = 5.15, SE = 1.34, p < 0.001) and child emotion regulation (B = .90, SE = .18, p < 0.001) than caregivers without maltreatment histories. They also report less, but still significant, improvement in parental self-efficac...
Source: Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Source Type: research