A Scoping Review of the Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Model (TREM)

Abstract

The link between interpersonal trauma and negative biopsychosocial outcomes has been well-documented. Integrated treatments that address trauma, mental health, and substance use among women with trauma histories have been found to be more effective than treatments that focus separately on these concerns. Since the early 2000s, the Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Model (TREM) has been described as a “promising” integrated trauma group therapy for women. Despite widespread recognition and implementation of TREM, its effectiveness has not been clearly established. The present scoping review is the first systematic effort to describe the extant literature on TREM and aims to provide an understanding of TREM’s effectiveness by organizing and synthesizing the available empirical data. Guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews, a systematic search was conducted using PubMed, PsycINFO, SW Abstracts, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science. Quantitative dissertation findings not published elsewhere and peer-reviewed journal articles published in English that reported outcomes from TREM intervention research with adult women were included. Twelve of the initial 385 publications identified met the inclusion criteria and reported data from nine studies. TREM demonstrated statistically significant effects on posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, psychological/psychosomatic distress, and substance use. A more limited set of findings suggests that TREM may also be associated with additional gains, including self-esteem, relationship power, social support, attachment, and spiritual well-being. Future research should replicate findings, use random assignment to groups, involve larger sample sizes and more representative samples, examine optimal duration, and identify components that facilitate change.

Web-Based Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment for Traumatic Stress and Alcohol Misuse Among Survivors of Sexual Assault and Intimate Partner Violence: Usability and Acceptability Study

“…Thus, increasing motivation to reduce alcohol use and teaching alternative coping strategies to use during periods of negative affect, particularly in response to trauma-related distress, recently after exposure to IPV and SA could have a substantial impact on decreasing the development and sustainment of alcohol misuse. In addition, the empowerment model, which is often applied to interventions for survivors of SA, highlights the importance of aligning a survivor's long-term goals with their behaviors in trauma recovery [23]. Therefore, aligned with the empowerment process model, empowering survivors by giving power and control over choices about their health [24] and helping survivors to identify how their values align with their current alcohol use could enhance the likelihood of reducing use after IPV and SA.…”

“…CHAT is tailored for recent survivors of IPV and SA and provides SBIRT primarily for alcohol misuse, while also screening and offering psychoeducation about traumatic stress and drug use, which commonly co-occur with alcohol misuse among survivors of SA [14,41]. The SBIRT intervention is based on the motivational model of alcohol use [20], self-medication theory [16], and the empowerment model [23] and applies principles of motivational interviewing to reduce motives to drink alcohol and increase valued living, particularly when experiencing negative affect, which are theoretical and empirically supported intervention targets for alcohol misuse. CHAT follows the core SBIRT model components.…”

“…CHAT was based on previous SBIRT interventions for survivors of traumatic events, including an SBIRT intervention for IPV and alcohol use (Brief Spousal Assault Form for the Evaluation of Risk [11] and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Rethinking Drinking [46]). The SBIRT intervention is based on the motivational model of alcohol use [20], self-medication theory [16], and the empowerment model [23] and applies principles of motivational interviewing to reduce motives to drink alcohol and increase valued living, particularly when experiencing negative affect, which are theoretical and empirically supported intervention targets for alcohol misuse. The SBIRT intervention, "CHAT" involves (1) psychoeducation about alcohol and drug use specific to IPV and SA; (2) screening and assessment for alcohol misuse, AUD, drug use, and traumatic stress symptoms using standardized measures; (3) personalized feedback about drinking quantity, recommended drinking limits, impact of drinking and drugs on recovery from SA, and money spent on alcohol and drugs; and (4) brief exercises aimed at increasing motivation and healthy alternatives to alcohol use, including value identification, readiness to change ruler, goal setting, identification of coping skills, and social support.…”

Relación entre las adicciones y el trauma emocional desde el modelo biopsicosocial

“…Terapia grupal integrada que se centra el TUS, la ansiedad, la angustia. Trabaja el autoconcepto, la relajación, el apoyo social, el apego y la espiritualidad (Masin-Moyer et al, 2022).…”