The Policy and Research Group

Published 2018

Practice Self-Regulation™

Program Description

Practice Self-Regulation (PS-R)™ is a therapeutic, trauma-informed intervention designed for youth affected by adverse child experiences. The intervention helps youth understand the impact of trauma on their sexual decision-making and learn about sexual health, with the aims of decreasing their risky sexual behavior and promoting their ability to regulate behavior. PS-R™, developed by Resources for Resolving Violence, is undergoing a rigorous evaluation by The Policy & Research Group to determine its effectiveness and contribute knowledge to the teen pregnancy prevention evidence base.

• Population: Youth (ages 14-19) who are receiving individual outpatient counseling services
• Locations: Eight cities across five states: Bakersfield, Fresno, and Oakland, CA; New Orleans, LA; Saco, ME; Adrian and Ann Arbor, MI; and Albuquerque, NM
• Partners: Outpatient clinics and independent licensed mental health clinicians

Goals

1. Increase young people’s knowledge of sexual health and the impact of trauma on sexual decision-making
2. Increase young people’s healthy sexual decision-making
3. Increase young people’s self-regulation in all areas of their lives

Strategies

Therapy-education sessions
In 10 one-on-one sessions, each participant learns about sexual health from a licensed mental health clinician (facilitator) trained in PS-R™. During the sessions, participants and facilitators discuss the effects of trauma and the personal goals, beliefs, values, and choices that affect a person’s sexual health and well-being. They also review the workbook chapters participants completed (described below) and explore ways to apply lessons learned to daily life.

Workbook and fact sheets
Between sessions, participants answer questions in a workbook designed to help youth understand and apply effective strategies for self-regulation, sexual decision-making, healthy relationships, and personal safety. Additional fact sheets address topics such as: anatomy and physiology, puberty and adolescent development, identity, pregnancy and reproduction, and sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.

Multi-sensory activities
During the therapy-education sessions, facilitators lead participants through multi-sensory activities, which engage as many senses as possible to help participants understand and retain key concepts, practice skill-building, and improve decision-making. Activities included guided visualizations, art therapy, breathing exercises, and more. For example, in the “Personal Shield” activity, participants discuss the basic human need for self-protection with the facilitator and then create their own shields as a symbol of this need.

"[The program] made me realize that I can be strong and make good choices for the future. It made me realize my goals and want to make them come to life."
- PS-R™ program participant

Stats at a Glance

• 24.2 national teen birth rate (per 1,000 females ages 15-19) in 2014¹
• 7.8-39.2 range of 2014* teen birth rates (per 1,000 females ages 15-19) in the eight counties where PS-R™ operates; five are higher than the national average^2,3,4,5,6
• 84 percent participants said their facilitators gave them tools to help regulate their emotions (2018)
• 84 percent participants plan to use information and skills learned about preventing STDs, HIV, and pregnancy (2018)
• 148 participants enrolled in PS-R™ from July 2016 through July 2018

* Reflects the most recent year for which data are available.

Grantee Information

Lynne Jenner
Director of Projects
504-865-1545
ljenner@policyandresearch.com
www.policyandresearch.com/

Print the full success story here.

About the TPP Program

The Office of Population Affairs (OPA) Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) program is a federal grant program that funds diverse organizations working to prevent teen pregnancy across the United States. OPA invests in both the implementation of evidence-based programs and the development and evaluation of new and innovative approaches to prevent teen pregnancy. The OPA TPP program reaches adolescents ages 10-19, with a focus on populations with the greatest need in order to reduce disparities in teen pregnancy and birth rates.

Footnotes

¹ Hamilton, B.E., Martin, J.A., Osterman, M.J., Curtin, S.C., & Matthews, T.J. (2015). Births: Final data for 2014. National Vital Statistics Report, 64(12). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_12.pdf. ^{back to top}

² California Department of Public Health, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division. (2018). Adolescent birth rate (ABR) by county, females aged 15-19: California 2000, 2013, 2014 and 2015. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CFH/DMCAH/CDPH%20Document%20Library/Data/Adolescent/ABR-Single-Yr-2013-2015.pdf. ^{back to top}

³ State of Louisiana, Office of the Governor. (2018). Teen births by parish. http://gov.louisiana.gov/page/teen-births-by-parish. ^{back to top}

⁴ Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. (2018). Maine, teen births. http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/maine/2016/measure/factors/14/data. ^{back to top}

⁵ The Annie E. Casey Foundation, KIDS COUNT Data Center. (2018). Births to teens ages 15-19. https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/1642-births-to-teens-ages-15-19?loc=24&loct=5#detailed/5/3744-3826/false/573,869,36,868,867,133,38,35,18,17/any/13098,13108. ^{back to top}

⁶ The Annie E. Casey Foundation, KIDS COUNT Data Center. (2017). Teen birth rate, ages 15-19. https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/3843-teen-birth-rate-ages-15-19?loc=33&loct=2#detailed/5/4815-4847/false/870,869,868,573,36/any/17301,17800. ^{back to top}