Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Suicidal Latina Adolescents: Supplemental Dialectical Corollaries and Treatment Targets

Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Suicidal Latina Adolescents: Supplemental Dialectical Corollaries and Treatment Targets

Abstract

The main goal of this paper would be to explain extreme behavioral habits that the writers have seen in dealing with Latina adolescents that are suicidal and their moms and dads in the framework of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). These extreme habits, called dialectical corollaries, provide to supplement the adolescent/family dialectical dilemmas described by Rathus and Miller (2002) as an element of dialectical behavior therapy for suicidal adolescents with borderline personality features. The dialectical corollaries proposed are “old college versus new school” and “overprotecting” versus “underprotecting” and they’re described in-depth. We also identify particular therapy goals for every single corollary and discuss techniques that are therapeutic at attaining a synthesis involving the polarities that characterize each corollary. Lastly, we recommend clinical methods to utilize whenever practitioners reach an impasse that is therapeutic the parent-adolescent dyad (in other words., dialectical problems).

Introduction

Last year, the Youth Behavior Risk Surveillance System unearthed that 21% of Latina adolescent females seriously considered a suicide effort (SA) in the past 12 months and 14% had involved with one or more committing committing committing suicide effort (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). These SA prices had been greater than those for African-American (8.8%) and Caucasian-American adolescent females (7.9%). The majority of patients are Latina adolescents at Montefiore Medical Center’s Adolescent Depression and Suicide Program in the Bronx, NY. Our team carried out studies with Latina adolescents, moms and dads, and dealing with clinicians using the aim of enhancing our therapy protocol with this group that is high-riskGermán, González, & Rivera-Morales, 2013; Germán, Haaz, Haliczer, Bauman, & Miller, 2013).

A promising treatment for Latina adolescents who will be suicidal is dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), an evidence-based therapy initially developed for adults with borderline character disorder (BPD) who have been chronically suicidal (Linehan, Armstrong, Suarez, Allmon, & Heard, 1991; Linehan et al., 2006; Van den Bosch & Verheul, 2007; Verheul et al., 2003). Dialectical behavior treatment had been adjusted to be used with teenagers by Rathus and Miller (2002). Studies comparing DBT to treatment-as-usual conditions have indicated promising leads to reducing deliberate behavior that is self-harm psychiatric hospitalizations, suicidal ideation, despair, hopelessness, and borderline personality disorder symptomatology (Mehlum et al., 2014; Rathus & Miller, 2002).

Marsha Linehan (1993) proposed that folks who take part in suicidal and nonsuicidal self-injurious behaviors (NSSI) with an analysis of BPD frequently turn to extreme behavioral habits, that are described in DBT as dialectical dilemmas. Whenever these habits happen, the specific changes between polarized behavioral extremes in order to manage his / her psychological state. Nonetheless, these habits are inadequate and frequently function asexual dating to over or under control the individual’s emotions and habits, and generally are hence considered as “dialectical failures.” Correctly, Linehan (1993) developed therapy goals to get a synthesis between your extreme behavioral designs by decreasing these maladaptive actions ( ag e.g., active passivity, obvious competence, self-invalidation) and increasing adaptive habits (e.g., active problem solving, efficiently asking for assistance, and self-validation). See Linehan (1993) for the full writeup on the DBT dialectical dilemmas that is original.

In working together with adolescents who possess numerous issues and BPD features, Miller, Rathus, and Linehan (2007) described additional extreme behavioral habits that had been transactional in nature and happened between your adolescent and their or her environment. They identified three dialectical issues specific to working together with adolescents and their moms and dads (in other terms., extortionate leniency versus authoritarian control, normalizing pathological actions versus pathologizing normative behavior, and fostering dependence versus forcing autonomy). These dialectical issues have now been beneficial to conceptualize adolescents’ and their moms and dads’ problematic behavioral habits and also to further formulate appropriate therapy objectives.

Centered on our research findings and medical findings of Latina adolescents and families, the present writers increase upon the adolescent that is existing issues by proposing supplemental dialectical corollaries usually seen in Latino families. We first review the adolescent/family that is existing dilemmas, and then talk about the dialectical corollaries. Our objectives are to offer extra interpretations regarding the adolescent dilemmas to foster a significantly better knowledge of the extreme behavioral habits that may manifest in Latino families and better inform our therapy goals and methods.

Quick Article On Adolescent Dialectical Issues 1

Extortionate Leniency versus Authoritarian Control

Moms and dads 2 usually waver between two extremes in this issue. Excessive leniency refers to moms and dads being extremely permissive by making not enough demands that are behavioral their teenagers. Authoritarian control refers to your opposite—parents being too punitive. A good example of extortionate leniency is whenever moms and dads usually do not enforce effects for his or her child skipping classes that she may engage in self-harm behaviors if she receives a consequence because they believe. Consequently, moms and dads could be left feeling resentful, powerless, disoriented or guilty as they genuinely believe that their parenting behavior is not in line with regards to individual values. In this example, over the years while the parents’ not enough enforcing consequences that are appropriate, the adolescent’s emotional and behavioral sequelae often intensify (e.g., she now cuts college with greater regularity, is a deep failing most of her high school classes, and it is violating curfew).