Date of Award

Spring 5-5-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Major

Expressive Therapies

First Advisor

Wendy Allen

Abstract

This review examines digital and expressive storytelling in a clinical, community-based health center, focusing on its impact and relationship with trauma. Existing research has explored how digital storytelling serves as an intervention for addressing intergenerational trauma, trauma transmission, identity development, and social systems affecting youth. This community engagement project integrates these ideas with reflections from clinicians, exploring how clinicians' involvement in digital storytelling may influence care, confidence, and cultural understanding. Theories central to this research include Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory and systems-based awareness maps, which help examine the broader systems that influence youth as they develop their narratives. The transmission of intergenerational trauma and its role in adverse health outcomes is rarely addressed in psychotherapeutic interventions, particularly among adolescents. This issue is especially prevalent in underserved communities, where clinicians are seeking ways to make mental health care more accessible and encourage help-seeking behavior among youth. This review aims to address this gap by examining trauma-informed therapies as a potential intervention model for underserved populations. Through research, it becomes clear that while there are clinical, community-based programs using trauma-informed models, few integrate the influence of intergenerational trauma with culturally sensitive approaches for clinicians in practice. This paper concludes with a call for the widespread adoption of the frameworks discussed, advocating for their use in communal healing.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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