Research
Studies by the non-profit organization,
Connections & Links ~ From Trauma to Resilience
The Stream Model was developed as part of Meirav Tal Margalit's doctoral dissertation. It focused upon relational trauma and the research was conducted with elderly women suffering from spouse abuse in Israel during the years 2002-2005. To read the abstract of this PhD click here.
For present research (in Hebrew), click here.
The Connections & Links ~ From Trauma to Resilience non-profit organization has carried out several research-based therapy groups based on the STREAM model over the last few years. The therapeutic model was examined in two studies: 'Second Lebanon War Casualties' (2007) and 'Women: Avenues of Resilience' (2008). The primary goal of the studies was to ascertain the effectiveness of group therapy in assisting amelioration or recovery from the effects of trauma, in a short-term group framework of eight encounters. Another purpose of the more recent study was to strengthen the body's coping mechanisms and facilitate integration with the resources of faith amongst the participants and to understand the processes that they underwent.
Two target populations experiencing acts of hostility or terrorism participated in the studies:
1. Residents of the North who were sent to the psychiatric clinic in Tzfat's Ziv Hospital, due to post-traumatic stress disorder from the Second Lebanon War.
2. Women from the Afikim BaNegev Torani Community in Sderot who did not initiate therapy but welcomed the opportunity to acquire coping tools and to develop resilience.
The research paradigm in both studies is qualitative-naturalistic, using mixed methods and with the characteristics of Appreciative Inquiry (AI).
The joint research methods were: semi-structured personal interviews prior to the group meetings (in the Sderot Resilience Encounters) with a group interview at the conclusion of the meetings; questionnaires-- TSC-Trauma Symptom Checklist and the STREAM questionnaire of mind-body healing signs and resources.
In addition, the 'Women: Avenues of Resilience' study employed the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire (SCSORF) as well as the Janoff-Bulman Assumptive World's questionnaire. This study employed a control group (that did not participate in the meetings) and a follow-up meeting after four months (for the group's participants) where they filled out additional questionnaires. In both studies, triangulation will be carried out between the findings in different methods.
The integration of Somatic Experiencing (SE) in the interviews, with the AI research approach for populations in trauma, allowed the interviewees of both studies to talk about sensitive subjects without experiencing flooding. Not only was re-traumatization avoided in the reconstruction of their experiences, but it proved to be an empowering and healing experience in itself.
The findings of the studies are still being processed. The major findings point to the effectiveness of the STREAM model in the process of recovery from the repercussions of trauma, and yield testimony to the existence of evidence-based therapy. As a result of the therapy, the participants' trauma symptoms were alleviated.
As an interim conclusion we can deduce that the STREAM therapeutic model is appropriate for a wide range of populations that were exposed to trauma, over a wide range of ages. It also seems to be effective for a wide range of trauma types, from interpersonal traumas involving abuse to terror-based ones. Finally, it is effective for those who experienced traumas in the past as well as those whose trauma intervention takes place in real time.
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