Intervention to Support the Reintegration of Former Combatants and Soldiers

The project aims to investigate if trauma-related disorders and appetitive aggression can be reduced in former ex-combatants in DR Congo when a specific intervention (Narrative Exposure Therapy for Forensic Offender Rehabilitation, FORNET) is delivered by trained local personnel (phase 1). In a second step, the project aims to investigates the treatment success if this specific therapy is carried out by local personnel who have been trained by other local personnel ("train the trainer", phase 2) under the supervision of experts of the University of Konstanz.

Study Overview

• Status: Unknown
• Conditions: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder; Appetitive Aggression
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: NET for Forensic Offender Rehabilitation (FORNET): a variant of Narrative Exposure Therapy; Other: Control group

Detailed Description

The reintegration of former child soldiers and ex-combatants is a big challenge in war-torn countries. Former child soldiers and ex-combatants often suffer from mental health problems and show enhanced levels of aggression. The present study focuses on the reduction of appetitive aggression and the improvement of mental health in former child soldiers and ex-combatants in DR Congo.

The project consists of four steps:

1. Training of selected DDRRR personnel(first generation)in FORNET (a variant of Narrative Exposure Therapy to treat trauma-related disorders and to reduce appetitive aggression)by experts from the University of Konstanz.
2. Treatment phase 1: Intervention will be carried out by therapists of the first generation. The trained therapists of the first generation will be supervised from the experts of the University of Konstanz.
3. Training of a second generation of DDRRR personnel in FORNET by the therapists of the first generation.
4. Treatment phase 2: Intervention will be carried out by therapists of the second generation. The trained therapists of the second generation will be supervised from the therapists of the first generation.

The study is conceived as a randomized controlled study. In phase 1 and in phase 2, study participants will be randomized allocated to the intervention group (FORNET) and the control group (no intervention). The treatment effect will be measured by pre-post and 6-months follow-up evaluations.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 100
• Phase: Phase 2; Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Congo
  • Goma, Congo
    • Transit Camp for ex-combatants/Reintegration camp for ex-combatants (ETN)

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 16 years to 70 years (Child, Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Ex-combatants who live in a transit camp in Goma, Congo.

Exclusion Criteria:

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: NET for Forensic Offender Rehabilitation; Narrative Exposure Therapy for Forensic Offender Rehabilitation (FORNET)

Behavioral: NET for Forensic Offender Rehabilitation (FORNET): a variant of Narrative Exposure Therapy; During the proposed therapy, the client constructs a chronological narrative of his or her whole life which includes all traumatic experiences and perpetrated violent acts. All emotions, cognitions, sensory information, and physiological reactions are activated and linked to the autobiographical context.In five sessions the trained therapist and the client try to go through all important traumatic experiences and perpetrated violent acts. The sixth session is a group session with four to five clients. The group session is oriented on Interpersonal Psychotherapy and focuses on the role change from soldier to civilian.; Other: Control group; The control group receives no intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Appetitive Aggression (Appetitive Aggression Scale)	6 months
Symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (Post-traumatic Diagnostic Scale, PDS)	6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Functionality (Work and Social Adjustment Scale)	6 months
Symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9)	6 months
Substance abuse	6 months
Re-integration questionnaire	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Konstanz
• Collaborators: World Bank
• Investigators: Study Director: Thomas Elbert, Prof. Dr., University of Konstanz

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: June 1, 2012
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): February 1, 2014
• Study Completion (Anticipated): February 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 19, 2012
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 20, 2012
• First Posted (Estimate): June 21, 2012

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): July 30, 2013
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 29, 2013
• Last Verified: July 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder; Treatment of ex-combatants; Appetitive Aggression; FORNET for ex-combatants
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Mental Disorders; Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Aggression; Stress Disorders, Traumatic; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
• Other Study ID Numbers: WB_2012