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Treatment of Psychological Trauma in Crime VictimsAlthough all crime victims do not experience severe psychological trauma, most victims will develop at least mild stress responses following their victimization. Even individuals not present when the crime is committed, such as burglary victims, may develop psychological symptoms, such as difficulty sleeping in the house after it was robbed, feelings of psychological violation, and difficulty feeling safe and secure. But severe psychological trauma can result from almost any life-threatening event. Injuries that are physically disfiguring or those which disable primary adaptive functions are more likely to result in psychological trauma. Additionally, psychological trauma can occur in the absence of any significant physical injury, either as the result of witnessing trauma in others, or following personal escape from serious injury following a traumatic event. Psychological trauma may result in a post traumatic stress response (the most commonly expected diagnosis), but it can also cause depression, specific phobias, agoraphobia, generalized anxiety, or dissociation and psychosis. The treatment of psychological trauma depends partially on the type of emotional problem being presented, but cognitive and behavioral treatment approaches work very well. Cognitive treatment involves identifying the emotional meaning of the trauma, or how the trauma is linked to fear, anxiety and depression. Changing the emotional meaning of the event is essential for the treatment to be effective. Behavioral approaches involve teaching the individual relaxation skills, pain management skills, and desensitizing the individual to trauma cues. This last process combines relaxation skills with mental imagery and sometimes real-life practice facing the feared situation. The amount of time needed to treat psychological trauma depends on the extent of the trauma, but can require more than a year of psychotherapy. Even then, most severe trauma will leave some permanent psychological scars. Top of Page and Navigation Bar
Psychotherapy and Counseling for OffendersPsychotherapy is a process by which you examine your thoughts, feelings, actions and relationships, evaluate where problems exist, and learn how to make whatever changes are necessary to achieve better life adjustment and satisfaction. Counseling and psychotherapy are interchangeable because they describe the same process, and have similar goals. Many criminal acts are linked to psychological problems that can be treated. In fact, if more psychological treatment was provided to offenders, we could reduce the crime recidivism rate considerably. Within correctional institutions, psychotherapy services for inmates has been mostly abandoned because of cost and poor results. Recently, in New Jersey, the courts have ruled that correctional institutions have an obligation to provide psychological treatment to inmates with diagnosed psychological disorders. Those services are provided by the correctional institution. Psychological treatment provided privately, on an outpatient basis, either as a condition of probation or parole, can help convicted individuals learn how to interact appropriately within society, while shifting the cost to the offender. Obviously, not all offenders are amenable to treatment, but if a psychological evaluation indicates that treatment would reduce recidivism, then it can be provided on court order. Violent offenders, sexual offenders, and some individuals who commit crimes because they do not empathize with victims are potential recipients of this psychotherapy. For some offenders, the presence of personality disorders demands long term treatment to achieve results. For juvenile offenders, psychotherapy is frequently indicated, and can be especially helpful in the rehabilitation process.
Dr. Franklin provides psychotherapy and counseling |
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Donald J. Franklin, Ph.D. is a NJ licensed psychologist (#2244) |
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