Repairing Links: Building Attachments in the Preschool Classroom (original) (raw)
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Infant Mental Health Journal, 2010
This book focuses on the importance of infant mental health. Society is recognising the impact of the very earliest years and this book provides a lovely handbook and framework for all clinicians working in and interested in this area. It strongly advocates that practitioners think of engaging in child-parent psychotherapy with this younger age group. The aim to promote this practise is clear and very well justified throughout the book. The authors are both American and there is reference to American systems throughout;but this does not take away overall from the content. Structurally the book is divided into 10 bulging chapters. The scene is set in the first two chapters before chapter three introduces child-parent psychotherapy highlighting 'how to' before proceeding to the assessment process in chapter four. Chapters five to eight deal with specific difficulties in the parent-child relationship before chapter nine wisely highlights how to practise child-parent psychotherapy with other systems. Chapter ten is reflective;offering closing thoughts. It is a busy;full book which pulls together theory;research and practice from many psychological perspectives throughout. It is a tall order but it manages to do so in a cohesive;engaging and comprehensive manner. The density of the book and the relentless tight text could be offputting but the content is well worth the read through. I thoroughly enjoyed this book from the initial illuminating quote in the preface to the developmental information;case examples and means of intervention. The book draws one in and is thought-provoking and illuminating. One immediately thinks of cases where the information would have been relevant and it is a book which will be dipped into time and again. I do think it would be great value to any clinicians working with infant and young children or even for those who work with older-aged children but who wish to gain insight into where difficulties arose and gain information related to psychology theory and research all at the same time. If there was one criticism it is that there is so much information in the book I fear some of the key messages could get lost. I loved the Twelve Principles of Early Child Development on p. 83 (table 3.1). I will be printing them out and putting them on the office wall. As a parent and professional they are certainly thoughtprovoking and in themselves help me to moderate my parental behaviour. This
Restoring Safety: An Attachment-Based Approach to Clinical Work with a Traumatized Toddler
Infant mental health journal, 2015
This clinical case study explores the integration of infancy research, brain development, attachment theory, and models of infantparent/child-parent psychotherapy to address the needs of abused and neglected young children placed in foster or adoptive homes. Traumatized children employ defensive strategies to survive when there is no "good enough" caregiver (D.W. Winnicott, 1953, p. 94), and helping professionals can provide therapeutic experiences to develop or restore a child's sense of safety. With the case example of Anthony and his foster/adoptive parents, I illustrate how to manage and contain a traumatized child's terror, rage, and grief through therapeutic sessions with the parent and child together, and supportive parental guidance. I promote attention to the child's ability to self-integrate and to regulate his own affect, and encourages secure-base parental responses that facilitate a child's shift toward secure attachment behavior.
Behind Closed Doors: Interpersonal Trauma in Early Childhood
The word trauma tends to ignite images of war, natural disaster and terrorism which dominate public awareness. However, practitioners believe that the most prevalent traumatic risk occurs behind closed doors. These traumas are experienced by children in the form of abuse, neglect, sexual violation, family violence, family dysfunction, exposure to drug and alcohol abuse, mental health issues and/or criminality ). The resultant trauma significantly affects a child's social, emotional, psychological and physiological development throughout their life course. It not only creates disruption, but significantly impacts on the child's ability to develop a secure attachment with their parent/caregiver and their capacity to form new attachment relationships in the future, and puts them at risk of developing behavioural problems and psychological disorders (Golding, Debt, Nissim & Stott, 2006;). These risks have significant implications for intervention approaches. For practitioners must have knowledge and understanding of trauma, as well as being trauma-informed in order to focus on the various challenges which traumatised children face. Thus, the importance of treating traumatised children with up-to-date trauma-focused, evidence-informed interventions is crucial to minimise family disruption and provide a continuum of care which meets the child's individualistic needs.
An Ecological Perspective: Therapist Practices with Children who Experienced Abuse and Trauma
Australian Psychologist, 2012
This qualitative study explores experiences of psychotherapists working in public settings with children who experienced abuse and trauma. The study sought to investigate and understand factors which intruded upon and or supported the capacity for psychotherapists in a community clinic to cognitively process and understand supportive and constraining aspects of the professional context. An important focus was the organisational context of psychotherapists. Nine psychotherapists were interviewed to gain an understanding of their experiences with and perceptions of the needs of children including factors considered important in therapy, the influences of their organisational context, and challenges and rewards of the work. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of interview data revealed three broad themes identified as relational, organisational, and systemic. An ecological metaphor was used to conceptualise these themes as they related to psychotherapists and the children with whom they worked. The findings demonstrated the importance of the psychotherapist's organisational context on how they experienced their work. This study also considered the need to conceptualise therapy with children who have experienced trauma within the interaction of the child and therapist's relational, organisational, and systems context.
Early Childhood Professionals’ Perspectives on Dealing with Trauma of Children
School Mental Health
Childhood trauma is a significant concern in Australia and internationally. Professionals working in the early childhood education sector (i.e., providing early childhood education and care to infants, toddlers, and children from birth to age eight) are positioned to provide valuable support for children affected by trauma. However, there is less research on early childhood professionals’ perspectives and experiences of supporting trauma-exposed children compared to other education professionals (e.g., primary and secondary school teachers). This study explored early childhood professionals’ perspectives and experiences in relation to supporting children exposed to trauma. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 early childhood professionals in Victoria, Australia, and data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings illustrate that while educators develop valuable skills and experience growth from supporting trauma-exposed children and their families, they also ex...
Educators of young children and knowledge of trauma-informed practice
2019
Decades of research on the impact of trauma in early childhood suggest severe risks to the mental health, emotional, social, and physical development of a young child. More recent research suggests that prolonged exposure to trauma can also affect a child's ability to learn and their early academic success. Trauma-exposed students can pose a variety of different levels of challenges to schools and educators of young children and to date, few studies have addressed ECE teachers' role in providing trauma support. An aim of the present study was to contribute to this literature by exploring the beliefs of BC early childhood education (ECE) teachers in their level of readiness and capability to work within a trauma-informed practice (TIP) framework to support their traumaexposed students. Through a sequential, mix-methods approach, a self-report survey and semi-structured interviews were used to gauge BC ECE teachers' knowledge of TIP, their preparedness, and their ability in using this framework to support their most vulnerable students. Teacher participants were recruited through the Early Childhood Educators of British Columbia conference and ECE community social media groups, Survey data was primarily collected through an online survey with interviews taking place in-person and audio-recorded. Survey results revealed that the majority of teachers believe they are somewhat prepared and able to apply the tenants of TIP in their classrooms despite a lack of training and resources provided by their schools and administrations. In follow-up interviews 14 subthemes emerged from a thematic analysis of the data under four broad themes: Challenges for ECE Teachers, Administrative Protocol and Support, Effective Approaches and Additional Support Desired by ECE Teachers. Findings of this study iv suggest ECE teachers are very interested in receiving more knowledge and training to provide optimal support for their trauma-exposed students.