The therapist makes every effort to implement individual interventions in the presence of caregivers to ensure that the cognitive and behavioral changes initiated during these interventions can be reinforced and modeled by caregivers and sustained in the home and other settings (e.g., school, neighborhood). In such instances, adolescent cognitive distortions and cognitive deficiencies are assessed as possible contributing factors to the aggressive or impulsive behavior and, when relevant, are targeted using individual interventions. Some youths, however, continue to display serious aggressive or impulsive behavior in one or more contexts (e.g., with certain peers) after systemic interventions have been consistently implemented by caregivers, teachers, and other key persons in the youth's natural ecology. Usually, problem sexual behaviors diminish in frequency and intensity when systemic interventions are implemented in MST-PSB. Likewise, under the guidance of the therapist, the caregivers often develop strategies to monitor and promote the youth's school performance interventions in this domain typically focus on establishing improved communication between caregivers and teachers and on restructuring after-school hours to promote academic efforts. Peer relations interventions are conducted by the youth's caregivers, with the guidance of the therapist, and often consist of active support and encouragement of relationship skills and associations with non-problem peers, as well as substantive discouragement of associations with deviant peers (e.g., applying significant sanctions). At the peer level, interventions often target youth social skill and problem-solving deficits to promote the development of friendships and age appropriate sexual experiences. Moreover, conjoint work with family members and other appropriate persons in the youth's social ecology (e.g., teachers, extended family) is essential in the development of plans for risk reduction, relapse prevention, and victim safety. At the family level, MST interventions often aim to (a) reduce caregiver and youth denial about the sexual offenses and their sequelae, (b) remove barriers to effective parenting, (c) enhance parenting knowledge, and (d) promote affection and communication among family members. The approach is guided by the same principles and uses many of the same evidence-based techniques as in MST for nonsexual offenders but focuses on aspects of the youth's ecology that are functionally related to the problem sexual behavior. The MST-PSB model is described in a supplemental treatment manual (Borduin, Letourneau, Henggeler, & Swenson, 2009). A clinical volume (Henggeler & Borduin, 1990) and treatment manual (Henggeler, Schoenwald, et al., 2009) specify MST interventions for youth antisocial behavior and delineate the processes by which youth and family problems are prioritized and targeted for change. Multisystemic Therapy (MST) is an intensive family- and community-based treatment that addresses the multiple causes of serious antisocial behavior across key systems within which youth are embedded (family, peers, school, and neighborhood). Therapists have 3-5 families on their caseloads, and rotating members of the team are available to respond to crises 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The intervention is individualized for each family families are provided family therapy, youth are provided individual therapy and services are delivered over a period of 5-7 months. MST for sexual offenders (MST-PSB) focuses on aspects of a youth's ecology that are functionally related to the problem sexual behavior and includes reduction of parent and youth denial about the sexual offenses and their consequences promotion of the development of friendships and age-appropriate sexual experiences and modification of the individual's social perspective-taking skills, belief system, or attitudes that contributed to sexual offending.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |