Determining the impact of a movement-based intervention on the trauma symptoms and emotion regulation of adolescent victims of child sexual abuse

• Main Author: Tad-y, Gabrielle Kaye M.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2023
• Subjects: Sexually abused children; Sexually abused teenagers; Clinical Psychology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_psych/46; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etdm_psych/article/1046/viewcontent/2023_Tad_y_Determining_the_impact_of_a_movement_based_intervention_Full_text.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

Child sexual abuse (CSA) affects millions of adolescents worldwide. It is considered a developmental trauma and is highly associated with several negative outcomes such as trauma symptoms and difficulties in emotion regulation. Early interventions on CSA have been proven effective but also experience challenges such as unwillingness of the adolescent victims to engage in talk therapy, absence of a biological parent to attend the required sessions, and financial concerns. Other possible cost-effective and non-threatening alternatives are expressive arts interventions such as movement and dance. Several studies have demonstrated the efficacy of movement and dance in promoting positive outcomes on vulnerable populations. As such, this study aims to determine the impact of a movement-based intervention on the trauma symptoms and emotion regulation of adolescent victims of child sexual abuse. Paired samples analyses showed a significant decrease in trauma symptoms and difficulties in emotion regulation after the movement intervention among adolescent CSA victims in a residential center. The results emphasize the mind-body connection in trauma recovery. It also supports the polyvagal theory, which opens the door to the exploration and utilization of movement as treatment for trauma. Further studies are encouraged to conduct more rigorous research designs such as randomized controlled trials, and to evaluate its efficacy in other clinical populations.