Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-dh8gc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-06T05:01:28.615Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

24 - Can debriefing work? Critical appraisal of theories of interventions and outcomes, with directions for future research

from Part IV - Debriefing overview and future directions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2010

Beverley Raphael
Affiliation:
New South Wales Health Department, Sydney
John Wilson
Affiliation:
Cleveland State University
Get access

Summary

EDITORIAL COMMENTS

This chapter draws together historical, social and psychotherapeutic strands as they contribute to the background of debriefing and its evolution. Its relation to military psychiatry, crisis intervention, narrative tradition, psychoeducation, grief counselling, group psychotherapy, behavioural and cognitive therapies, and psychopharmacology are touched upon and their implications for an ‘eclectic model’ considered.

McFarlane provides a framework for synthesis but one where the reader will be called upon to expand and explore underlying detail. Possible theoretical bases for the effects of debriefing, either positive or negative, are explored. Of particular interest is the view that the acute response period may be more amenable to pharmacological than to psychological interventions.

The lack of good outcome data on debriefing, both through the difficulties of researching this type of intervention or indeed ensuring its fidelity, lead to the important emphasis on the need for further research. As McFarlane suggests, this may require a previously developed set of instruments, an on-line funding source and an international consortium to answer the questions that must be addressed about the effects of this type of intervention. This is the more so with the recent Cochrane Review, as well as other studies that indicate few findings of benefit and some concern over potential for negative outcomes. Furthermore, financial, legal and occupational health and safety requirements may place demands for the provision of debriefing with the belief that it will lessen costs and workforce damage.

Type
Chapter
Information
Psychological Debriefing
Theory, Practice and Evidence
, pp. 327 - 336
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2000

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×