investigations.
Breaking the Cycle of Intergenerational Abuse impacted by this cycle. Often, intergenerational abuse occurs due to a lack of intervention from previous generations. Play therapists use multidisciplinary support and trauma-informed therapies to treat clients and work with families at the CAC to break this cycle. Play therapists at CACs acknowledge that trauma affects the primary victim, caregivers, siblings, and extended family members.
CAC therapists utilize play therapy and play-based models to incorporate nonoffending caregivers and family members. These therapeutic process and empower them to be primary change agents for the child. Filial Therapy is a psychoeducational family intervention that uses caregivers as partners through special child-centered play sessions. Similarly, CPRT is an evidence-based systemic intervention grounded in CCPT theory, attachment theory, and neurobiology
Trauma, Tragedy, and Triumph: Healing and
Recovery through Play Therapy The short- and long-term deleterious outcomes of childhood abuse and neglect are well documented in the peer-reviewed literature. maltreatment on the development of chronic physical and mental health problems. The mental health component of the CAC model emphasizes the use of evidence-supported mental health treatment for children and adolescents who have been victims of childhood many of the elements of evidence-based practices and techniques
play therapy theory for children ages 3 to 12 years old, has a rich research base and is known to alleviate symptoms related to behavioral and emotional problems, reduce disruptive behavior, increase self- externalizing problems, and contribute to overall wellness and
CLINICAL EDITOR’S COMMENTS: Children's Advocacy Centers, and the play therapists who serve them, are uniquely attuned
to the needs of children and caregivers who have experienced the cycle of abuse.
randomized control trial of CCPT and ACEs demonstrated increases and effectiveness of CCPT among children at risk for complex trauma
Additionally, structured models and approaches to play therapy,
Scope of Practice in the Multidisciplinary World of
the CAC disclose their systemic participation as part of informed consent. practice and role. Parents and multidisciplinary partners, such as law enforcement and child protection caseworkers, often ask therapists for more disclosure information. This can result in blurred roles and is not considered best practice as the play therapist’s professional role is posttraumatic symptom reduction, not investigative.
In addition, play therapists must be mindful of their systemic role when composing clinical documentation. Due to the criminal nature of many CAC cases, therapists frequently receive subpoenas for clinical records as well as to testify in court. Each CAC has its own rules and regulations for how to handle subpoenas. CAC therapists view each subpoena on a case-by-case basis, keeping the client’s best interest in mind while realizing that the child's legal guardian has rights to the records. CAC therapists generally are not trained child custody evaluators and likely are prohibited from testifying to custody matters per the family code. In criminal cases, although law enforcement and prosecutors may desire CAC therapists to declare if
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