Drug Addiction and Criminal Behaviors Among Juvenile (Research Paper Sample)

Drug Addiction and Criminal Behaviors among Juveniles Student’s Name Institution Affiliation Drug Addiction and Criminal Behaviors among Juveniles Psychodynamic Theory The psychodynamic theory posits that just like behavioral theory, people’s actions are determined by life experiences. The theory rests on the assumption that a person's behavior is a result of their past experiences and that no behavior/symptom is accidental. Developed by Sigmund Freud, this theory believes that behavioral problems have disparate meanings based on the psychological organization of the victim and their development stage (Kourkoutas & Hart, 2015). The meanings may also depend on family structure and dynamics. As a result, drug addiction in adolescents may be occasioned by both internal and interpersonal processes taking place in their social context and their wider family. Goals The primary goals of this theory include understanding the client's self-awareness and getting a glimpse into the effect of past behaviors on the participants' present conduct. In the therapy, this model would aid the participants in examining their symptoms and addiction problems often emanating from the past dysfunctional relationships and behaviors and manifest the need to engage in criminality and substance abuse. Another goal of the therapy is to integrate the key developmental learning missed by the adolescents in their earlier stages of emotional development. Processes and Exercises In this theory, there are a couple of basic processes and exercises. The therapy is often dependent on the appropriate use of the core confidential relationship theme (CCRT) - the center of an individual's issues. This concept develops from the core response from others and the core response of the self. Upon initiating the therapy, the therapist and the group should work in conjunction to ensure the group's goals are incorporated into the CCRT framework. The meaning, function, and effects of drug addiction and criminal activities are then explored, with a special focus on how the core responses to oneself and the other participants might have contributed to the issues. The CCRT framework is also actively used in identifying the potential obstacles to the recovery process during psychotherapy (Cornelis et al., 2017). This is done by the group and the therapist exploring the group's anticipated responses from others and discussing how the perceptions can change upon stopping drug addiction and criminality. The participants are also encouraged to talk freely regarding fears, issues, desires, dreams, and anything that comes into their mind. Techniques The techniques used in this theory include focusing on recognition, acknowledgment, understanding, and expressing the participants' negative and contradictory feelings. The group members are helped to understand how their earlier behaviors and emotions affect their current decisions and conduct. It is also helped to analyze and resolve their present behaviors and change for the better through deep exploration and analysis of earlier emotions and experiences. Group Leadership Style The primary focus of this leadership style is for leaders to gain glimpses into their personality and comprehend the type of response from the juniors. Leaders are also expected to motivate members in the psychoeducational group to develop insights into their individual characteristics and personality for them to understand their reactions to each other and their leader. In this approach, leaders are more effective whenever they have insights into their psychological makeup and that of their subordinates. It also assumes that leaders should have insights into their emotional responses and patterns of behavior. Sessions Outline Session 1: Introduction Session Objectives: 1 To establish the ground rules and regulations for the group. 2 To introduce the members to each other and explain the focus of the group to all participants. 3 To help the group members in setting up individual goals. Time Allotted: 3 days. Supplies: The supplies needed in this session include; * Notebooks * The participants' current prescription medications * Envelops incase mailing letters is necessary * Pens Group Set-Up: The primary goal for the group set up is to provide the participants with similar interests with the avenue to discuss them. There will also be restrictions on who can join the group. The group sessions will include between 8 and 10 individuals with similar circumstances. With this number of individuals, the adolescents will be provided with an avenue in which they feel safe, heard, and understood. Their personal issues will also be fully identified and managed during the therapy sessions. During this session, the therapist will work to determine the things the adolescents need to talk about and the method of treatment or the therapy course that they deem most beneficial. In this session, even if the group members may potentially know each other, it is vitally important to spend some time to introduce the participants to each other. Session 2: Realistic Thinking Objectives: 1 To explore the participants’ personal issues on a deeper and superficial approach. 2 To help group members to effectively manage their addiction trends and negative emotions by specifically identifying the negative behaviors and replacing them with realistic and balanced thinking. 3 To identify the specific addiction problems affecting the participants at the individual level. Time Allotted: 7 days Supplies: * Notebooks and writing materials * Tables and Individual desks * Reading materials. Group Set-Up: Realistic thinking is helpful in the rehabilitation process given that thoughts have a significant impact on an adolescent’s feelings. Doing this means helping the participants look at themselves, their friends, and the society in a rather balanced and fair way without being overly positive or negative. The group members will be asked to observe paying attention to what they think and keeping track of the type of thoughts they have. To identify the specific addiction problems of the individual participants, members will be encouraged to determine the particular problematic thoughts they have and what they think should be redressed. All these will be achieved in one 1-week session, subdivided into three for each of the session objectives. The group members will be required to draft the specific personal issues and the addiction problems in their notebooks and pass them to the group leader. This will include writing down the drug they felt that they could not avoid within the next one month. Through this, the therapist can identify the commonly abused drug and the rationale behind its extensive abuse. Session 3: Social Skills Training and Exposure Objectives: 1 To explore the individual cognitive processes which pervade social, behavioral, and emotional issues among participants. 2 To emphasize training skills especially for coping with drug addiction and substance abuse. 3 To help the participants to effectively manage their fear and anxiety. Time Allotted: 14 days Supplies: * Copies of handouts * Tables * Individual desks * Restrooms * Water fountains Group Set-Up: In these groups, homework will be common, with the group members required to practice the newly acquired skills and coping mechanisms outside the sessions. They will then be required to report how they faired with the new skills during the next group session. The participants will also be expected to practice the emphasized skills. Here, the group leader assumes the role of modeling the desired skills and structuring experiences to aid the participants in practicing them. From the knowledge and understanding they gained, members are expected to be reassured and thus give feedback on the impacts of their behaviors on others. Helping the adolescent participants gain exposure will be vital for their recovery process. The exposure can include gradually and repeatedly engaging in feared situations until the feeling of less anxiousness develops. The participants will be asked to make a list of the situations they were most afraid of, the anxiety they wished to overcome, and their current addiction problems. These items should be ordered from the least important to the most important. Once the participants can approach the specific situations and substances without much anxiety, it is prudent to move on to the next item. This approach can particularly aid adolescents in managing their anxiety issues associated with substance abuse. Session 4: Closing Group Session Objectives: 1 To evaluate the thoughts, comments, and reactions of the previous sessions and the entire process. 2 To assess the progress reports, observations from the previous reports, and redress any arising issues. 3 To plan for the future thus allowing the adolescent participants to merge the skills and lessons learned into their current recovery strategy after the groups have ended. Time Allotted: 4 days Supplies: * Notebooks * Writing Pens * Writing sheets * Gifts * Stickers Group Set-Up: Planning for the closing phase remains utterly important. The group leader will thus plan early in advance so that the session does not end abruptly. Each session will be ended constructively and not just stopped. This will be done using a closing exercise to aid in effectively terminating the session. The group members will write about something they appreciate about each other on a sheet. The use of an affirmation sheet of paper will act as the most effective way of bringing the social-emotional problems to closure. The paper may be placed at the back of each participant's seat. The sheets can then be removed and read by one person in the group. This will help in evaluating the thoughts and comments from the previous session. Screening The psycho-educational group will b...