Women After Spousal Abuse Summary
Journal Article Review on The Effects of Forgiveness for Women After Spousal Abuse
Lacey Lewis
March 26, 2013
COUN 506
Liberty University
Summary In journal article The Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Depression, Anxiety, and Posttraumatic Stress for Women After Spousal Emotional Abuse by Gayle B. Reed and Robert D. Enright they attempt to look at if forgiveness therapy would decrease the level of depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms and if it would increase their self-esteem, environmental mastery, and finding meaning in the suffering. To do so the researchers compared forgiveness therapy with an alternative therapy that included “anger validation about the wrong doing of abuse, assertiveness, and interpersonal skill building” (Reed & Enright, 2006, p. 921). To test this Reed and Enright chose 20 participants that had been separated or divorced from their spouse or partner for at least 2 years. The women for this study were 90% European Americans, 5% Hispanic Americans, and 5% Native Americans. There were a range of ages of the women that participated from high school students all the way to post graduate degrees ages 25-55. There were also variations of abuse that the women had experienced such as criticizing, …show more content…
ridiculing, control, threats of personal harm, and sexual abuse. The women were randomly placed in groups that would receive the forgiveness therapy and the alternative therapy. The women would attend their assigned therapy sessions for one hour per week. These therapy sessions last from 5 months to 12 months. The results showed that for the participants in the forgiveness therapy showed a statistically significantly greater increase in several aspects such as forgiving the abuser, self-esteem, environmental mastery, finding meaning in suffering, and survivor status.
For the alternative group they showed a statistically significantly greater increase in anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and victim status. The study showed an improvement in negative psychological outcomes. I thought it was stated best that in this study “These women have been given the message in the abuse context that they are worthless and that they cannot make good choices. FT corrects that message.” (Reed & Enright, 2006, p.
928).
Personal Response I originally took interest in this article The Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Depression, Anxiety, and Posttraumatic Stress for Women After Spousal Emotional Abuse by Reed and Enright because of my background and present job. I have worked in a mental health setting for two years and now in foster care for a year. During this work I have encountered many women and girls that have suffered from abuse. This women and children attend therapy and sometimes have shown improvement, however there are still problems that remain and that are not dealt with through therapy, specifically self-esteem and forgiving the abuser. I was curious if through forgiveness therapy that clients might be able to improve in these areas as well. I also wanted to increase my knowledge on ways to help with women that have been abused and if working through forgiveness therapy would be beneficial.
Initially after reading this article I was shocked that the alternative therapy showed a significant increase in depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress because I would have thought that if one was to work through forgiving their abuser would have helped these issues. I was happy to see that there improvement in self-esteem. I have found, like I am sure any person in counseling or in field like mine, that women or people in therapy for abuse blame themselves for the abuse and generally suffer from a low self-esteem. To see that forgiveness therapy could improve this give me a tool to use now and in the future. After reading this article I would like to continue my research in specific methods of therapy that can help the population that I work with. I know that through my studies in the Master in Professional Counseling program I will be exposed to other forms of counseling that will show to throughout my career. However, looking into specifics that I will be dealing with and continuing to learn will only improve my ability to be able to help those that are and will be my clients.
Application
While working at a mental health agency I had a client that came in for an intake session with me. The client Hillary was a female age 25 that comes from a middle class family. She works as a dental assistant currently in school to become a dentist. Hillary states that she had been separated from her boyfriend for 3 years. Hillary and Tom dated all throughout high school and continued through the beginning of her college years. Hillary states that in the beginning Tom was sweet and kind. However as time went on he became very jealous and would talk down to Hillary explaining to her often that she would never find anyone that would be able to put up with her. Hillary states that now she has a low self-esteem and has not been able to date since they separated 3 years ago. Hillary states that this makes her sad and that she takes medicine to help with her depression. Through what I have learned through this article I think I would incorporate in her session’s forgiveness therapy. I would want to work with Hillary on forgiving Tom so this could improve her self-esteem. I would also want to incorporate in her sessions some pieces for the alternative therapy such as anger validation and assertiveness as this showed an improvement in the area that Hillary needs improvement which was depression. I would want to help Hillary understand that the abuse was not her fault and possible have use the empty chair technique. I would want her to use this so that she could express to Tom how he had made her feel.
References
Reed, G., & Enright D. (2006). The effects of forgiveness therapy on depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress for women after spousal emotional abuse. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 5, 920-929.
Lacey Lewis
March 26, 2013
COUN 506
Liberty University
Summary In journal article The Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Depression, Anxiety, and Posttraumatic Stress for Women After Spousal Emotional Abuse by Gayle B. Reed and Robert D. Enright they attempt to look at if forgiveness therapy would decrease the level of depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms and if it would increase their self-esteem, environmental mastery, and finding meaning in the suffering. To do so the researchers compared forgiveness therapy with an alternative therapy that included “anger validation about the wrong doing of abuse, assertiveness, and interpersonal skill building” (Reed & Enright, 2006, p. 921). To test this Reed and Enright chose 20 participants that had been separated or divorced from their spouse or partner for at least 2 years. The women for this study were 90% European Americans, 5% Hispanic Americans, and 5% Native Americans. There were a range of ages of the women that participated from high school students all the way to post graduate degrees ages 25-55. There were also variations of abuse that the women had experienced such as criticizing, …show more content…
ridiculing, control, threats of personal harm, and sexual abuse. The women were randomly placed in groups that would receive the forgiveness therapy and the alternative therapy. The women would attend their assigned therapy sessions for one hour per week. These therapy sessions last from 5 months to 12 months. The results showed that for the participants in the forgiveness therapy showed a statistically significantly greater increase in several aspects such as forgiving the abuser, self-esteem, environmental mastery, finding meaning in suffering, and survivor status.
For the alternative group they showed a statistically significantly greater increase in anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and victim status. The study showed an improvement in negative psychological outcomes. I thought it was stated best that in this study “These women have been given the message in the abuse context that they are worthless and that they cannot make good choices. FT corrects that message.” (Reed & Enright, 2006, p.
928).
Personal Response I originally took interest in this article The Effects of Forgiveness Therapy on Depression, Anxiety, and Posttraumatic Stress for Women After Spousal Emotional Abuse by Reed and Enright because of my background and present job. I have worked in a mental health setting for two years and now in foster care for a year. During this work I have encountered many women and girls that have suffered from abuse. This women and children attend therapy and sometimes have shown improvement, however there are still problems that remain and that are not dealt with through therapy, specifically self-esteem and forgiving the abuser. I was curious if through forgiveness therapy that clients might be able to improve in these areas as well. I also wanted to increase my knowledge on ways to help with women that have been abused and if working through forgiveness therapy would be beneficial.
Initially after reading this article I was shocked that the alternative therapy showed a significant increase in depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress because I would have thought that if one was to work through forgiving their abuser would have helped these issues. I was happy to see that there improvement in self-esteem. I have found, like I am sure any person in counseling or in field like mine, that women or people in therapy for abuse blame themselves for the abuse and generally suffer from a low self-esteem. To see that forgiveness therapy could improve this give me a tool to use now and in the future. After reading this article I would like to continue my research in specific methods of therapy that can help the population that I work with. I know that through my studies in the Master in Professional Counseling program I will be exposed to other forms of counseling that will show to throughout my career. However, looking into specifics that I will be dealing with and continuing to learn will only improve my ability to be able to help those that are and will be my clients.
Application
While working at a mental health agency I had a client that came in for an intake session with me. The client Hillary was a female age 25 that comes from a middle class family. She works as a dental assistant currently in school to become a dentist. Hillary states that she had been separated from her boyfriend for 3 years. Hillary and Tom dated all throughout high school and continued through the beginning of her college years. Hillary states that in the beginning Tom was sweet and kind. However as time went on he became very jealous and would talk down to Hillary explaining to her often that she would never find anyone that would be able to put up with her. Hillary states that now she has a low self-esteem and has not been able to date since they separated 3 years ago. Hillary states that this makes her sad and that she takes medicine to help with her depression. Through what I have learned through this article I think I would incorporate in her session’s forgiveness therapy. I would want to work with Hillary on forgiving Tom so this could improve her self-esteem. I would also want to incorporate in her sessions some pieces for the alternative therapy such as anger validation and assertiveness as this showed an improvement in the area that Hillary needs improvement which was depression. I would want to help Hillary understand that the abuse was not her fault and possible have use the empty chair technique. I would want her to use this so that she could express to Tom how he had made her feel.
References
Reed, G., & Enright D. (2006). The effects of forgiveness therapy on depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress for women after spousal emotional abuse. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 5, 920-929.