Child-Parent Psychotherapy

Brief Description: CPP is a treatment for trauma-exposed children aged 0-5 (i.e., child abuse, domestic violence, community violence). Typically, the child is seen with his or her primary caregiver, and the dyad (parent-child) is the unit of treatment.

Theoretical basis: Based in attachment theory but also integrates psychodynamic, developmental, trauma, social learning, and cognitive behavioral theories.
Key components: Treatment focuses on safety, improving the child-caregiver relationship, empower caregivers and support their ability to respond in helpful and soothing ways when child is upset, foster child's ability to use parent as a secure base, provide developmental guidance regarding how children regulate , normalization of trauma related response, joint construction of a trauma narrative, with the goal of returning the child to a normal developmental trajectory and promote a reflective capacity in fostering the ability to understand the other's perspective.
Goal: is to support and strengthen the caregiver-child relationship as a vehicle for restoring and protecting the child’s mental health.

REFERENCES

Lieberman, A. F., & Van Horn, P. (2004). Don't hit my mommy: A manual for child parent psychotherapy with young witnesses of family violence. Zero to Three Press: Washington, D.C.
Lieberman, A. F., & Van Horn, P. (2008). Psychotherapy with infants and young children: Repairing the effects of stress and trauma on early attachment. New York: The Guilford Press.
https://nctsn.org. National Child Traumatic Stress Network.