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A comparison of short-term group and individual therapy for sexually abused women
1Faculty of Social Work, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario. cstalker@machl.wlu.ca
Objective:
To compare the effectiveness of 10 sessions of group therapy with that of 10 sessions of individual therapy in a sample of 86 adult women seeking treatment for the effects of childhood sexual abuse.
Method:
Participants were randomly assigned to the 2 treatment modalities and tested at assessment, pretherapy following a 10-week wait condition, posttherapy, and 6-month and 12-month follow-up.
Results:
Participants had fewer symptoms and better psychosocial functioning posttherapy and were further improved at the 6- and 12-month follow-up. Neither treatment modality was superior to the other. Approximately one-half of the sample sought further treatment during the follow-up periods.
Conclusions:
Improvement in symptoms and functioning was associated with short-term treatment in both modalities, but many patients remained distressed and required further treatment. Future research should investigate whether sexually abused women who meet criteria for specific diagnoses require more focused and/or longer-term therapy.