TRAUMA-FOCUSED PSYCHOSOCIAL COUNSELLING FOR YOUTH AFFECTED BY TERRORISM AND BANDITRY IN CONFLICT-AFFECTED REGIONS OF NIGERIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66811/eijrihs.vol1.no5.76Abstract
This study evaluated the effects of a trauma-focused psychosocial counselling framework on selected dimensions of psychosocial well-being among young people affected by terrorism and banditry in North-West Nigeria. A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest non-equivalent control-group design was adopted. The sample comprised 300 internally displaced young people aged 15-24 years drawn from camps in Zamfara, Katsina and Kaduna States. The experimental group (n = 150) received the trauma-focused psychosocial counselling programme, while the control group (n = 150) received conventional relief counselling. Data were collected with the Youth Trauma and Psychosocial Well-being Inventory (YTPWI; α = .88) and analysed with descriptive statistics and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) at the .05 significance level. The experimental group recorded substantially larger mean gains than the control group in post-traumatic stress symptom reduction (1.83 versus 0.10), emotional regulation (1.45 versus 0.10) and social reintegration (1.58 versus 0.08). ANCOVA further indicated statistically significant group effects for the cognitive-behavioural trauma-therapy component, F(1, 297) = 512.44, p < .001; the resilience-building counselling component, F(1, 297) = 433.81, p < .001; and the grief and bereavement counselling component, F(1, 297) = 489.15, p < .001. The findings support the use of structured trauma-focused psychosocial counselling for conflict-affected young people, while also indicating the need for culturally responsive delivery, competent supervision and sustained psychosocial follow-up. The study recommends integrating trauma-focused, resilience and grief-responsive counselling into humanitarian and educational rehabilitation services for displaced young people in conflict-affected Nigerian communities.
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