ABSTRACT
As children are in the process of development, they are particularly vulnerable to the devastating effects that trauma can produce. Complex trauma in children refers to multiple exposures and/or sources of traumatic events in childhood, typically those of interpersonal and invasive nature that tend to have a wide variety of long-term consequences. The effects of trauma can be widespread and may impact the cognitive, affective, behavioral, or physical realities of the exposed individual. Some children have a greater risk of developing mental health problems due to a variety of risk factors such as their genetic vulnerability, temperament, family dysfunction, poverty, caregiver separation, and abuse histories.
This chapter will consider the need for clinicians be skilled at executing prevention and intervention strategies that address each level of the child’s system as described by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model. Research has indicated that adolescents who have experienced multiple traumas often develop more mental and physical complications compared to their counterparts who have experienced a single trauma. As complex trauma is associated with individualized and distinct effects, it is important that play therapists have a repertoire of effective trauma-informed interventions that can be utilized in treatment.
