Resilience in Reentry: Cognitive-Behavioral Resilience Training for Parolees With Adjustment Challenges

This pilot study assesses the feasibility and acceptability of delivering a brief Cognitive-Behavioral Resiliency treatment to a population of recently released parolees. This study will also give a preliminary indication if the treatment is associated with reliable improvements in adjustment symptoms and well-being for parolees.

In the proposed pilot study, residents of a reentry facility in Los Angeles, CA will be able to enroll in a course of brief (5-session) Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focused on building resiliency in response to the effects of institutionalization. Those who choose to receive the intervention will be included in the intervention group (target N = 30). Those who choose not to receive the intervention will be given the opportunity to complete assessments at the same intervals as the intervention group (assessment only group; target N = 30). Participants will report their degree of satisfaction with the program and how much they think they benefitted from the program at postintervention. Participants will complete self-report measures of adjustment disorder symptoms, flourishing, meaning and purpose in life, and PTSD symptoms at pretreatment (baseline), posttreatment (5 weeks after baseline), and 2-month follow-up (13 weeks after baseline).