Filial therapy with nonoffending parents of children who have been sexually abused.

Abstract

This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of a 10-week filial therapy training model as a method of intervention for nonojfending parents and their children who have experienced sexual abuse. Filial therapy is a didactic/dynamic approach used by play therapists to train parents to be therapeutic agents with their children. Analyses ofcovariance revealed that the nonojfending parents in the experimental group significantly increased their level of empathy in their interactions with their children, significantly increased their attitude of acceptance toward their children, and significantly reduced their level of stress. Measures of the children's behavior, anxiety, emotional adjustment, and self-concept indicated positive trends. This study supports filial therapy as an effective intervention for nonoffending parents and their children who have experienced sexual abuse.

Atendimento a mães de vítimas de abuso sexual e abusadores: considerações teóricas e práticas

“…Estudos realizados em âmbito internacional (Corcoran & Pillai, 2008;Costas & Landreth, 1999;Deblinger, Stauffer, & Steer, 2001;Machado, 2008) demonstraram os benefícios de incluir mães ou cuidadores não abusivos em atendimento psicológico a famílias em que tenha ocorrido abuso sexual. Segundo Machado (2008), que trabalha com essa temática na realidade portuguesa, dentre os principais aspectos a serem abordados na fase da intervenção com a família destacam-se: a) o rompimento da ideia de caso único; b) auxiliar os pais a compreenderem o impacto do abuso, a lidarem com suas fantasias, culpabilizações e com a procura de explicações; c) explicar os procedimentos legais e médicos necessários; d) orientar em relação à pressão que a família faz para que a criança esqueça ou perdoe; e) evitar tentativas de vingança por parte dos familiares; f ) sensibilizar os cuidadores não abusivos para a importância do apoio à criança; e g) auxiliar os pais a lidar com os comportamentos disfuncionais, com as perguntas da criança vítima, evitando a superproteção que poderá surgir, tendo em vista as experiências sofridas.…”

A Filial Therapy Model Through a Family Therapy Lens

“…For instance, multiple research studies involving CPRT have demonstrated that filial therapy leads to increases in parents' acceptance of their children (Bratton & Landreth, 1995;Chau & Landreth, 1997;Costas & Landreth, 1999;Harris & Landreth, 1997;Kale & Landreth, 1999;Landreth & Lobaugh, 1998;Lee & Landreth, 2003;Tew, Landreth, Joiner, & Solt, 2002;Yuen, Landreth, & Baggerly, 2002). In addition, multiple studies have demonstrated that participation in CPRT increases parents' empathic behaviors toward their children (Bratton & Landreth, 1995;Carnes-Holt, 2010;Chau & Landreth, 1997;Costas & Landreth, 1999;Ferrell, 2004;Glover & Landreth, 2000;Harris & Landreth, 1997;Jang, 2000;Kidron, 2004;Lee & Landreth, 2003;Smith & Landreth, 2003;Yuen et al 2002) . Winek et al (2003) found that parents facilitated play sessions by demonstrating behaviors of acceptance and encouragement, and children facilitated play sessions by expressing emotions.…”

Filial Therapy with Teachers of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Preschool Children

“…Using the filial therapy model in 1978 to train college students as consultants, L. Guerney determined that filial therapy training was significantly effective in teaching relationship skills. Additional literature has further advocated the use of filial therapy training with teachers (Bratton & Landreth, 1995;Ginsberg, 1984;Landreth, 1999). Hence, training teachers to be therapeutic agents with their students has become an additional accepted therapeutic dimension of filial therapy.…”

“…Costas and Landreth (1999) characterized filial therapy as: "Unlike more behaviorally oriented therapies, this model of therapy is not directed toward specific problems, but rather focuses on strengthening the parentchild relationship" (p. 3). The once a week special playtime sessions make it possible for the child to understand more completely the parents' behaviors, attitudes, and feelings toward the child and frees the child to express thoughts, feelings, and needs to the parents through the medium of play (B.…”

“…With practice, filial therapy empowers parents to allow their children to take appropriate responsibility for their own (the children's) behavior and emotional growth. Instead of parents attempting to control children by means of fear or threat of punishment, filial therapy has been shown in clinical trials in a wide variety of settings to be an effective means for parents to free their children to be self-enhancing and selflimiting in age-appropriate ways, within the scope of the individual child's particular abilities and talents, and special needs and limitations (Bratton, 1994;Chau & Landreth, 1997;Costas, 1998;Glass, 1987;Glazer-Waldman, 1991;Harris & Landreth, 1997;Kale, 1997;Kott & Landreth, 1997;Lobaugh, 1991;Tyndall-Lind, 1999;Smith, 2000;Yuen, 1997). Andronico and Guerney (1969) recognized that besides parents, teachers also had the ability to generalize to the classroom setting and their students the relationship skills that could be gleaned from filial therapy training.…”