U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Treating Low-Income and Minority Women With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Pilot Study Comparing Prolonged Exposure and Treatment as Usual Conducted by Community Therapists

NCJ Number
237077
Journal
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 23 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2008 Pages: 1027-1040
Author(s)
Ulrike Feske
Date Published
August 2008
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined the effectiveness of prolonged exposure (PE) over posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by therapists in a front-line services clinic.
Abstract
Twenty-one female psychiatric outpatients with chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are randomly assigned to prolonged exposure (PE; n = 9) for PTSD or treatment as usual (TAU; n = 12). Participants are predominately low income and African-American with complex trauma and psychiatric histories. Treatment is delivered by community therapists with no prior training in behavior therapy for anxiety disorders. Clients who completed PE show a greater improvement in PTSD symptoms, general anxiety, and depression than clients who completed TAU. These findings provide preliminary evidence suggesting that PE is an effective treatment for core PTSD symptoms, even when delivered by community therapists in a front-line services clinic. (Published Abstract)