Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Sep-Oct;31(5):e3044.
doi: 10.1002/cpp.3044.

Effectiveness of Narrative Exposure Therapy for Treatment of PTSD Following Childhood Trauma: A Single-Case Series Design

Chris Hoeboer  1   2   3 , Laura Wienen  1 , Mary Smiddy  3 , Steven van der Werff  4   5 , Marija Maric  6 , Edith Tjoa  3 , Lucie Timmers  3 , Maartje Schoorl  3   5
Affiliations

Effectiveness of Narrative Exposure Therapy for Treatment of PTSD Following Childhood Trauma: A Single-Case Series Design

Chris Hoeboer et al. Clin Psychol Psychother. 2024 Sep-Oct.

Abstract

Background: Narrative exposure therapy (NET) has shown promising outcomes for treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in refugees and veterans. Its effectiveness in patients with PTSD following childhood trauma is, however, still unknown.

Aims: We investigated whether NET is an effective treatment for patients with PTSD following childhood trauma.

Method: We studied treatment outcomes of nine adult patients in an outpatient setting. An AB single-case series design was used with a baseline of 4 weeks prior to treatment. Participants filled in weekly online questionnaires to assess their PTSD symptoms (using the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale [PDS]) and their experienced quality of life (using the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life [MANSA]). Data were analysed visually and using a mixed-effect model.

Results: Results revealed no significant reduction of PTSD symptoms during NET treatment, nor an increase in quality of life, as compared to baseline.

Conclusions: The results of our study do not underscore the effectiveness of NET treatment for patients with PTSD following childhood trauma. Further research is needed to study the effectiveness of NET in this population.

Keywords: PTSD treatment; childhood‐related trauma; narrative exposure therapy; posttraumatic stress disorder; quality of life; single‐case analysis.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Abu‐Zidan, F. M., A. K. Abbas, and A. I. Hefny. 2012. “Clinical “Case Series”: A Concept Analysis.” African Health Sciences 12, no. 4: 557–562.
    1. American Psychiatric Association. 2000. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM‐IV‐TR. 4th ed., text revision ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
    1. American Psychiatric Association. 2013. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM‐5. 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
    1. Balayan, K., M. Kahloon, G. Tobia, et al. 2014. “The Impact of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder on the Quality of Life: A Systematic Review.” International Neuropsychiatric Disease Journal 2, no. 5: 214–233.
    1. Bisson, J. I., S. Cosgrove, C. Lewis, and N. P. Roberts. 2015. “Post‐Traumatic Stress Disorder.” British Medical Journal 351.

LinkOut - more resources