Develop a presentation that articulates a convincing need for the research proposal you have developed. Refer to the Module Nine resources for additional

The Impact of Early Childhood Trauma on Adolescent Development

PSY-790-10178-M01

Capstone in Psychology

Elizabeth Babskie

January 31, 2025

Table of Contents

I. Introduction……………………………………………………………….…………… 3

· Overview of Research

· Research Questions

· Evaluation of Topic Fit to the Field of Psychology

· Target Audience

II. Literature Review………………………………………………………………………. 7

· Synthesis of Previous Scholarly Research Findings

· Comparison and Evaluation of Studies

· Addressing Research Gaps

· Contribution of Existing Research to Real-World Problems

· Organizing and Aligning the Literature Review to the Message

· Synthesizing Conclusion

III. Research Design………………………………………………………………………… 13

· Research Method

· Support for the Method to be Adopted

· Advantages and Disadvantages of Research Design

· Data-Collection Tools

· Population and Sampling Procedures

· Data Collection Process

· Data Analysis and Reporting

· Limitations and Assumptions

IV. Ethical Consideration…………………………………………………………………… 19

· Ethical Considerations Regarding the Research Problem

· Ethical Considerations Regarding the Population Under Study

· Ethical Considerations Regarding the Data-Collection Instruments and Their Analysis

· Ethical Considerations Regarding Other Aspects of the Study

V. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………….……23

The Impact of Early Childhood Trauma on Adolescent Development

I. Introduction

Overview of Research

The impact of early childhood trauma, including experiences such as abuse, neglect, and witnessing violence, has long been a topic of interest in psychology. These early traumatic experiences are known to impact the emotional, cognitive and social development of a person and these effects may persist to even adolescence. The aim of this study is to examine how childhood trauma affects adolescence with specific emphasis on the psychological aspect of emotional and social wellbeing and academic achievement. It also aims at identifying how effective intervention strategies can be used to enhance resilience of adolescents who have gone through such adversities especially in schools. Schools and community organizations, as primary agents of socialization during adolescence, have a unique opportunity to support these young people in overcoming the effects of early trauma.

Research suggests that trauma experienced during early childhood is often linked to disruptions in emotional and cognitive development, leading to difficulties in social interactions and academic engagement. These adolescents may have poor self-regulation skills, interpersonal relationships, and academic performance (Kalogeratos et al., 2024). Measures that can help in preventing or overcoming these challenges include; trauma informed care, SEL, and mental health services can go along way in reducing the impacts of early trauma. Realizing the need for early interventions, this study seeks to fill the gap between the knowledge of the theory of trauma and the application of intervention with specific emphasis on schools and community-based organizations for traumatized adolescents.

Research Questions

The proposed research aims to explore the lingering psychosocial effects of early childhood trauma, particularly how these residuals manifest during adolescence. A key inquiry in this study is identifying the specific ways in which early trauma continues to influence to determine how adolescents are affected by early trauma in terms of their emotional, cognitive and social development. Also, the study will assess whether childhood trauma has any effects on academic and social achievement in the later years. Knowledge of these effects can help in the formulation of long-term impact of early childhood stressors on human beings. Another major area of emphasis of the study is to establish what can be done to help adolescents who have experienced early trauma to become resilient. With reference to various therapeutic, educational, as well as community-based interventions, the study aims at identifying effective interventions that can enhance the development of adaptive coping styles and improved well-being. Lastly, the study will explore how schools and community organizations can design supportive environments tailored to the needs of these adolescents. By addressing these research questions, the study aims to bridge the gap between trauma theory and practical intervention strategies, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of how to support traumatized adolescents in academic and social settings.

Evaluation of Topic Fit to the Field of Psychology

The topic of review is trauma experienced during early childhood and its repercussions in later adolescent years. Trauma psychology generally falls under developmental psychology. Scientific evidence has already demonstrated that experiences of trauma significantly alter emotional modulation, cognitive maturation, and social functioning early in life. These changes contribute mightily toward structuring how well adolescents perform mental health, or disorders concerning them, for example, symptoms indicating PTSD, major depression, or anxiety problems. This study seeks to help build in its own unique area of resilient development interventions through schooling and at communities and elaborate on what psychological mechanisms undergo these and thereby apply interventions when the developing world needs care support.

Target Audience

The primary audience for this research includes mental health professionals, educators, and community leaders who work with adolescents, particularly those in school and community settings. This study will be useful to school counselors, psychologists, social workers, and educators who work with young people and their mental health. Also, other community organizations that deal with at-risk youths can benefit from the findings of this research since it will offer recommendations on the kind of interventions that can be implemented to enhance resilience among youths who have experienced early traumas.

This study will also be useful to scholars in the field of developmental psychology because it considers the impact of early childhood trauma on development. Other researchers who may have interest in trauma, resilience, and adolescent development will be in a position to expand from this study and understand the various ways in which early experiences have an impact on later outcomes. In this way, filling the gaps in the current state of knowledge, this study will provide fresh information on how further interventions can be developed to support adolescents who were exposed to early trauma and help them become successful individuals.

II. Literature Review

Synthesis of Previous Scholarly Research Findings

The literature review of early childhood trauma and its impact on adolescent development can be considered rather well-developed, especially the works that can be referred to as classical, including that of Felitti et al. (1998) that established the relationship between ACEs and health issues in the future. According to the study conducted by Felitti et al., it was evident that early trauma increases the vulnerability to mental health disorders such as PTSD, anxiety, and depression. However, their study was mainly concerned with adults and there was no significant concern given to the developmental stage of adolescents. This is a big gap since the adolescent phase is a very sensitive stage of human development, and early trauma at this stage has different effects that may not be observed when the person is an adult. To some extent, this research will seek to fill this gap by concentrating on adolescent development and the psychosocial impact of trauma during this age.

Another important study by Bethell et al. (2014) extends the ACEs framework by focusing on the protective factors that may help to reduce the impact of childhood adversity. Their research is mainly concerned with the relationship between early adversity and disaffiliation from school, and health consequences. Bethell et al. (2014) note that resilience is something that can be built in children and it is very effective in mitigating the effects of trauma. However, the study has not gone further to explain the kind of interventions that can be used to enhance resilience among adolescents especially in school. This is an area that the proposed research intends to focus on as a way of establishing more information. This study will therefore seek to investigate how school-based interventions can help in building resilience in adolescents and helping them cope with the effects of early childhood trauma.

On the same note, Brunzell et al. (2016) presented trauma-informed education as a model that seeks to adopt trauma-sensitive practices in school for learners with ACEs. This model also encourages the use of positive psychology, which is the study of the positive traits rather than the negative aspects. According to Brunzell et al. (2016), trauma-sensitive schools may enhance the learning process and the outcomes of traumatized learners. However, one has to note that the study does not provide quantitative evidence that would allow for generalizing the results of the research to various educational contexts. This gap is important because it raises concern on the current available literature that lacks empirical research evidence on the implementation of trauma-informed education in various school settings. This research will endeavour to do so by exploring trauma-informed interventions and their effectiveness in the improvement of adolescent resilience as well as increased academic performance.

Alisic et al. (2014) discussed PTSD in children and adolescents and factors associated with it and the need for early treatment. They stressed the high rate of PTSD in traumatized children and the need to intervene as soon as possible. Although their study was useful in establishing the link between trauma and PTSD, this study only looked at this one mental health outcome and not the other possible problems that traumatized children may experience, including depression, anxiety, or social isolation. The generalisability of this study is restricted to PTSD since the authors do not explore other forms of mental health that may be associated with early trauma among adolescents. This study intends to widen the scope to the other mental health related issues, like anxiety and depression and examine a range of various treatments for these problems.

Bryant and Deane (2022) conducted a comprehensive review of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for trauma-related disorders in children and adolescents. They focused on CBT as a potentially helpful therapeutic model in PTSD and this model is commonly used. Nevertheless, the review covered only CBT and did not examine other POTs like mindfulness-based therapies or family-based interventions that might be helpful for treating adolescents with trauma history. Although CBT has been demonstrated efficacy for the most part it is not a universal treatment and other forms of therapy might be helpful. This research will add value to the already existing literature by incorporating other forms of therapy such as mindfulness and family therapy and also to understand how all these therapies can be modified and implemented in the school and community settings to impact traumatized adolescents.

Comparison and Evaluation of Studies

A comparison of the studies have highlighted several issues with concerns to the trends and limitations. First, although Felitti et al. (1998) and Bethell et al. (2014) explored the long-term dangerous outcome of childhood trauma, including but not limited to mental health, they did not discussed about the approach or strategies aimed at the adolescents. There is a necessity to conduct research on the interventions for adolescents because this group of people is in a different developmental stage and needs appropriate attention. While the study by Brunzell et al. (2016) provides a good framework on how trauma-informed education should be conducted, it does not present rigorous data that would allow for generalization of the results obtained in different educational contexts. This is an area of weakness that the proposed research will fill by collecting data on the impact of trauma-informed practices in schools.

In addition, the studies conducted by Alisic et al. (2014) and Bryant & Deane (2022) highlight PTSD and CBT correspondingly; however, they do not consider other mental health outcomes or possible therapeutic approaches which may be more suitable for the adolescents. For instance, mindfulness and family-based therapies that have been found effective in treatment of trauma and resilience in adolescents are not well covered. Thus, the broadening of the range of interventions in question will enable this research to offer a broader perspective on the therapeutic management of adolescents with trauma.

Addressing Research Gaps

One weakness noted in the literature is that there is limited research done on the general intervention strategies that can be used to promote resilience in adolescents with more emphasis on school-age youths. Even though the concept of resilience is frequently mentioned in literature, there is little empirical work done to explain how the practices aimed at building resilience can be implemented in school contexts. Most of them are dedicated to the topic of trauma and its outcomes, including PTSD, but they do not consider the question of how to enhance resilience in youth in schools. This is a major gap because schools are a major part of adolescents’ lives and can be the ideal places to deliver care and resilience interventions for traumatized children.

Another notable gap is the focus on PTSD as the primary mental health outcome associated with childhood trauma, with less attention given to other issues such as depression, anxiety, or social withdrawal. It is also important to take a broader view of the potential impact of early trauma on adolescents since those who have been through trauma are at risk for developing various mental health issues. Moreover, although the literature emphasizes the significance