Abstract:
This research deals with a play therapy programme that was developed, implemented and evaluated with fifteen adolescent girls from three different ethnical backgrounds, namely Xhosa, Coloured and white. Five girls from each respective ethnical background were selected by means of purposeful sampling. The goal of this research was to implement and evaluate a play therapy programme for die adolescent girl that was sexually abused. In order to achieve this goal, information was gathered and a theoretical framework built with the help of a literature study. A critical investigation was done on existing intervention programmes for adolescents that were sexually abused, a play therapy programme for the adolescent girl that was sexually abused was developed, implemented, evaluated and recommendations were made for the use of the programme with the different ethnical groups, namely Xhosa, Coloured and white. Applied research was done; the researcher exploited existing knowledge to gather new knowledge to address immediate problems that professional people experience in practice. Within the context of applied research the goal of this study was to do intervention research. The researcher used a single-system design, A-B-A-A, to determine the effectiveness of the play therapy programme with adolescent girls from three ethical groups, namely: Xhosa, Coloured and white. A Research hypothesis was made, namely: If the play therapy programme is implemented with the adolescent girl, her self-perception and trauma-dynamic-elements will improve. The researcher used Creswell’s mixed methodology design model. A standardized scale, namely the Child Functioning Inventory - High School, was used to measure the adolescent girls’ self-perception and trauma-dynamic-elements before and after intervention. The researcher conducted a semi-structured interview, in conjunction with an interview schedule, with the respondent’s parent(s) before and after intervention. The researcher observed the respondents during the therapy sessions, field notes were made and every session were describe by means of report writing. The researcher had a follow-up interview three months after the post measurement with the adolescent and parent(s), to monitor the long-term effect of the play therapy programme after termination. The self-perception and trauma-dynamic-elements of every respondent that took part in the research and completed the therapeutic process, improved. The conclusion can therefore be made that the play therapy programme can be used successfully with the three ethnical groups, namely Xhosa, Coloured and white.
