Relaxation Techniques in Trauma Recovery for Children with Disabilities Experiencing Sexual Violence
##plugins.themes.EpsilonTheme.article.main##
Dayne Trikora*
Trauma resulting from sexual violence has intricate psycho-emotional and physiological effects on children with disabilities. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of relaxation techniques on anxiety symptoms, trauma symptoms, and sleep quality and social interactions. This was a Single Subject Design (SSD), A-B-A-B study with two subjects, a girl with physical disabilities and a boy with mild intellectual disabilities. The intervention consisted of breathing relaxation techniques, progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) and positive visualization. The findings also revealed that mean CAS scores during the intervention phase were significantly lower than mean scores in the observational phase from the pre-test to post-test, along with fewer nightmares and tantrum complaints. Sleep quality and in-person social interactions also improved significantly. Effectiveness of intervention was also analyzed using ‘Percentage of Nonoverlapping Data (PND’) showing 85% for Subject 1 and 80% for Subject 2, meaning a high level of intervention effectiveness. This reinforces the need for a comprehensive, family and community approach, and customized interventions. These findings can serve as a basis for the formulation of more inclusive and evidence-based rehabilitation programs for children with trauma secondary to sexual violence.
Alriksson‐Schmidt, A. I., Armour, B. S., & Thibadeau, J. K. (2010). Are adolescent girls with a physical disability at increased risk for sexual violence? Journal of School Health, 80(7), 361–367.
American Psychiatric Association, D., & American Psychiatric Association, D. S. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5 (Vol. 5, Issue 5). American psychiatric association Washington, DC.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change. Psychological Review, 84.
Barker, C., Pistrang, N., & Elliott, R. (2015). Research methods in clinical psychology: An introduction for students and practitioners. John Wiley & Sons.
Baumeister, R. F., & Heatherton, T. F. (1996). Self-regulation failure: An overview. Psychological Inquiry, 7(1), 1–15.
Beck, A. T. (1979). Cognitive therapy and the emotional disorders. Penguin.
Björkas, R., Richert, T., & Lindroth, M. (2024). Child welfare workers’ understanding of gender, sexual orientation and sexual health in assessments of youths with a problematic substance use. European Journal of Social Work, 1–12.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Harvard university press.
Davis, M., Eshelman, E. R., & McKay, M. (2008). The relaxation and stress reduction workbook. New Harbinger Publications.
Edmond, T., Auslander, W., Elze, D., & Bowland, S. (2006). Signs of resilience in sexually abused adolescent girls in the foster care system. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 15(1), 1–28.
Ekman, E., & Hiltunen, A. J. (2015). Modified CBT using visualization for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), anxiety and avoidance behavior–a quasi‐experimental open pilot study. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 56(6), 641–648.
Engel, F. L. (1977). Visual conspicuity, visual search and fixation tendencies of the eye. Vision Research, 17(1), 95–108.
Evans, V. A., & Axelrod, S. (2012). Kazdin, AE (2011). Single-Case Research Designs, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, xi+ 452 pp., $72.95. Taylor & Francis.
Foa, E. B., & Kozak, M. J. (1986). Emotional processing of fear: exposure to corrective information. Psychological Bulletin, 99(1), 20.
Friedrich, C. J. (2004). Filsafat hukum perspektif historis. Bandung: Nuansa Dan Nusamedia.
Green, S., Davis, C., Karshmer, E., Marsh, P., & Straight, B. (2005). Living stigma: The impact of labeling, stereotyping, separation, status loss, and discrimination in the lives of individuals with disabilities and their families. Sociological Inquiry, 75(2), 197–215.
Guralnick, M. J. (1999). Family and child influences on the peer‐related social competence of young children with developmental delays. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 5(1), 21–29.
Herman, J. P., & Cullinan, W. E. (1997). Neurocircuitry of stress: central control of the hypothalamo–pituitary–adrenocortical axis. Trends in Neurosciences, 20(2), 78–84.
Hoffman, B. M., Papas, R. K., Chatkoff, D. K., & Kerns, R. D. (2007). Meta-analysis of psychological interventions for chronic low back pain. Health Psychology, 26(1), 1.
Kivioja, N., & Mustasaari, S. (2024). Rights-based social work as a practice. The role of child welfare social work in the repatriations of Finnish children from the camps in north-eastern Syria. European Journal of Social Work, 1–12.
Palmer, L., Littleton, T., Font, S., & Ahn, E. (2024). Beyond child abuse: the array of family problems brought to the child welfare system. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 1–18.
Porges, S. W. (2011). The polyvagal theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation (Norton series on interpersonal neurobiology). WW Norton & Company.
Puspa, A. H. (2024). The Effect of Psychological Well-Being on Career Adaptability Mediated Emotional Intelligence in Yogyakarta PGSD Students. REVIEW OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY EDUCATION, CULTURE AND PEDAGOGY, 3(4), 276–295. https://doi.org/10.55047/romeo.v3i4.1403
Scruggs, T. E., & Mastropieri, M. A. (1998). Summarizing single-subject research: Issues and applications. Behavior Modification, 22(3), 221–242.
Shannon, P., & Tappan, C. (2011). A qualitative analysis of child protective services practice with children with developmental disabilities. Children and Youth Services Review, 33(9), 1469–1475.
Silverman, W. K., & Ollendick, T. H. (2008). Child and adolescent anxiety disorders. A Guide to Assessments That Work, 181–206.
Spielberger, C. D. (1972). Anxiety as an emotional state. Anxiety: Current Trends in Theory and Research/Academic Press.
Sullivan, P. M., & Knutson, J. F. (2000). Maltreatment and disabilities: A population-based epidemiological study. Child Abuse & Neglect, 24(10), 1257–1273.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes (Vol. 86). Harvard university press.
