Abstract
M.A.(Clinical Social Work)
In South Africa, trauma is a vivid reality for many children. Unfortunately due to a lack of
resources and knowledge, many children in early childhood who experience trauma symptoms are
left untreated. Children in this developmental phase of early childhood, have a limited vocabulary,
which adds to the challenge of effectively treating trauma through alternative talk therapies.
Neurotherapies like Eye Movement Integration Therapy (EMI), which does not rely on the verbal
ability of the child, has therefore gained a lot of interest.
The goal of this study was to explore whether EMI can be a useful intervention in treating trauma in
early childhood. The objectives included to, i) determine whether or not a change in trauma
symptoms was evident from pre- to post-EMI intervention, using the Trauma Symptom Checklist
for Young Children (TSCYC); ii) explore the perceptions of parents/caregivers regarding EMI’s
effectiveness in the reduction of trauma symptoms; and iii) formulate conclusions and
recommendations regarding EMI’s implementation as a trauma intervention with children in early
childhood.
The researcher followed an exploratory design. The one-group pre-test/post-test design was utilised
for conducting the study. The study made use of the Trauma Symptoms Checklist for Young
Children (TSCYC), a parent/caregiver report that measures the prevalence and intensity of trauma
symptoms like anger, anxiety, dissociation, post-traumatic stress intrusion, post-traumatic stress
avoidance, post-traumatic stress arousal, post-traumatic stress total and sexual concerns, in order to
determine if a single EMI session could produce a change in trauma symptoms. The group was
measured prior to the administration of one EMI session, which according to Beaulieu (2004) is
sufficient to result in a measurable change in trauma symptoms. Two weeks later the group’s
symptoms were re-measured, using the same instrument. The prescribed EMI protocol was
followed.
Although the findings from studies of EMI with adults and teenagers appear promising, the
usefulness of EMI with young children has not been explored. The results from the study indicated
that all of the symptoms as measured by the TSCYC reduced significantly (p<.05) after a single
EMI session. It would therefore appear as if EMI might be a useful intervention strategy to treat
trauma experienced during early childhood.