Psychoeducation for Children and Adults after the Marmara Earthquake: An Evaluation Study

Abstract

Education about the psychological reactions in the aftermath of a traumatic event may help reduce the adverse effects by providing a cognitive framework for one’s experience, and provides the survivors of trauma view their reactions as expectable; recognize the circumstances under which they should consider seeking further counseling; increase use of adaptive ways of coping; increase ability to help family members cope. This type of psychosocial intervention was used to reach the parents and children in the earthquake affected region after the Marmara earthquakes. The major aim of the present study is to make an assessment of the impact of these interventions. The assessment procedure consists of a satisfaction survey of the parents and children who attended the seminars. A comparison is also made between those who attended the seminars and those who did not, in terms of their opinions on issues regarding the psychological effects of the earthquakes. This report represents the data from a total of 463 parents and 774 students. In the parents group, 326 were in the comparison group and 137 were in the study group. Among the students, 181 were in the comparison group and 593 in the study group. Two questionnaires were used to collect data from the participants in the study. One questionnaire was for children over 12 years of age, and the other was for the parents. The results in general showed that, the seminars were helpful for parents and children to learn about the psychological reactions people have after earthquakes. However, they also showed that, to be more effective, there is a need for improvement in the way the seminars are conducted.

Keywords

psychoeducation disaster earthquake psychological trauma

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