Strengthening foster children’s skills: a descriptive study on a trauma-informed group intervention

Background: Foster children have an increased risk of psychological distress because they often experienced multiple traumatizing events. Untreated trauma and behavioural problems are important risk factors for breakdown of foster placements. Unfortunately, the application of first-choice trauma treatment is often complicated due to avoidance, dysregulation and motivational problems. Objective: The present study investigates whether the group intervention Tame your Dragon improves behavioural functioning and emotion regulation skills in children with trauma-related problems, who are unable or unwilling to start trauma treatment. It also examines whether this results in facilitating subsequent evidence-based trauma treatment. Method: In total, 7 intervention groups with 29 foster children participated in pre-test (T1) and post-test (T2) measurements. Questionnaires on child post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), behavioural problems and emotion regulation strategies were administered. Treatment advices for a subsequent intervention after completing the group were collected by file research. Results: Foster parents reported a significant increase in child adaptive emotion regulation strategies, but no changes in children’s behaviour, PTSS and maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. Self-report showed no change in PTSS, adaptive–and maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. After group intervention, 45% of the children was able to proceed with an evidence-based trauma treatment. Conclusion: This study provides initial evidence that a group intervention for foster children who are not willing or not able to enter evidence-based trauma treatment can be effective in strengthening adaptive emotion regulation strategies according to foster parents. Also there are indications that the group intervention enables almost half of the participants to proceed to trauma treatment.