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Allendale’s Counter-Allendale’s Counter-ResponseResponseSMSM Model Model and the and the Power of Looking Within : Power of Looking Within :

Application in School Application in School EnvironmentsEnvironments

2007 Conference on Best Practices & Guidelines for Non-public Special Education Programs – Division of Special Education, ISBE

November 30, 2007Presenters: Dr. Pat Taglione, Mary Shahbazian, & Lisa West

The Allendale Association

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Overview

• QI Structure – Data Collection and Evidence-Based Practice

• Introduction to Counter-ResponseSM and the LSCI principles of the Double

Struggle, Conflict Cycle, and Timeline

• Implementation Model and Staff Training

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•LSCI Institute founded in 1997, currently LSCI Institute founded in 1997, currently has 28 National Training sites as well as has 28 National Training sites as well as utilization in Europe and New Zealand; utilization in Europe and New Zealand; Allendale Association is a National Training Allendale Association is a National Training Site.Site.

Life Space Crisis Intervention OverviewLife Space Crisis Intervention Overview

•LSCI: developed by Long and Wood, based LSCI: developed by Long and Wood, based on original work of Fritz Redl, for settings on original work of Fritz Redl, for settings specific to specialized E/BD educational specific to specialized E/BD educational environments.environments.

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• The Double Struggle

• The Conflict Cycle

• The Time-Line

LSCI Served as the Springboard for the Development of Allendale’s Counter-Response Training Program.

The following concepts were expanded upon to create the CR model:

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“Double Struggle” LSCI Intervention

• May inadvertently escalate the youth’s behavior

• Youth is no longer the central focus of the crisis

• Resolve youth crisis while addressing the issue of adult behavior during a crisis

• Double Struggle: adult takes the youth’s acting-out behavior personally, and ultimately reacts emotionally as well

(Long, 1990)

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Expansion of “Double Struggle” Expansion of “Double Struggle” Concept in the Development of Concept in the Development of Counter-ResponseCounter-ResponseSMSM Training Training

• Counter-Aggression:Counter-Aggression: angry feelings generated in adults when confronted with aggressive or non-compliant behavior on the part of the youth

• Counter-Indulgence:Counter-Indulgence: fearful or overly sympathetic feelings generated in adults when confronted with aggressive behavior or pleas for indulgence on the part of the youth

• LSCI emphasizes the concept of counter-aggression

• Counter-ResponseSM Training includes the concepts of both counter-aggression and counter-indulgence

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Fight or Flight Response to StressFight or Flight Response to Stress – –one’s inherent physiological one’s inherent physiological

reaction to a crisis or reaction to a crisis or unconditioned aversive stimulusunconditioned aversive stimulus

• Counter-Aggression

• Counter-Indulgence

= Fight Response

= Flight Response

Type of Counter-Response

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COUNTER-AGGRESSION(Fight Syndrome)

CHANGE UNDERSTAND

Lack of Balance

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COUNTER-INDULGENCE(Flight Syndrome)

CHANGEUNDERSTAND

Lack of Balance

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THE KEY IS BALANCE…

UNDERSTAND CHANGE

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Counter -Counter -IndulgenceIndulgence

Counter - Counter - AggressionAggression

Transfer/Transfer/Discharge Discharge

Treatment Trap

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Splitting

SPLITTING

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When people work together to When people work together to manage their own counter-manage their own counter-

response and thereby eliminate response and thereby eliminate splitting - splitting -

the focus is back on the youth the focus is back on the youth which provides the opportunity for which provides the opportunity for

change to occurchange to occur CONSENSUS

YOUTH

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What is aWhat is a

Counter-Response?Counter-Response?

Response That Counters the Other

Person’s Behavior

Response Driven by our Emotions

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Counter-Response

A. Other Person’s Behavior – acts as trigger (Stage 4 of the conflict cycle)

B. Your Emotional Reaction

From the other person

C. Your Counter-Response Behavior

From your past

To avoid feeling your emotional reaction

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Projection

Kids project their feelings onto the adults in

an attempt to get rid of these feelings

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Projective IdentificationKids Get Us To Feel Their Feelings

via nonverbal behaviors“Right Brain-to-Right Brain communication”

“…People induce those closest to them to behave in prescribed ways. It is as if one individual forces another to play a role in the enactment of that person’s internal drama – one involving early object relationships…

An individual unconsciously projects a part of the self into another human being as a means of converting an inner struggle…into an external one.”

(Cashdan, 1988)

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We may project someone from our past

onto the kids

Our Own Projections

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Often we respond with some behavior as a

way to try to manage these feelings

We call this

COUNTER-RESPONSECOUNTER-RESPONSE

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Our Response Our Response to the Youth’s Behaviorto the Youth’s Behavior

is the Only Thing We Have is the Only Thing We Have Control Over Control Over

~~ Thus the Only Thing That Thus the Only Thing That

We Can Change We Can Change

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We call this We call this “The Power of Looking Within”“The Power of Looking Within”

versus versus “Fighting the Enemy Out There”“Fighting the Enemy Out There”

(Senge, 1990)(Senge, 1990)

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““The Cure Lies in Your Relationship The Cure Lies in Your Relationship with Your ‘Enemy’” with Your ‘Enemy’” (Senge, 1990, p.67)(Senge, 1990, p.67)

Once You Have Identified and Once You Have Identified and Managed Your Counter-ResponseManaged Your Counter-Response

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II. Conflict Cycle/Re-Enactment II. Conflict Cycle/Re-Enactment (Repetition Compulsion(Repetition Compulsion)

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The Conflict CycleThe Conflict Cycle

22Stressful Stressful

EventEvent

Attachment ModelAttachment ModelView of Self & OthersView of Self & Others

33Youth’s Youth’s FeelingsFeelings

44Youth’s Youth’s

BehaviorsBehaviors

55Adult/Youth Adult/Youth ReactionsReactions

Relational Trauma Re-Enactment

meaning of behavior/ youth’s conflict

Trauma HistoryTrauma History

(Feelings Behavior)(Feelings Behavior)

(Wood & Long, 1991) Modified

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Implicit Memory (Procedural)

Explicit Memory (Semantic/Episodic)

Left Brain (Verbal)

Right Brain(Nonverbal)

(Siegel, 1999)

Understanding Re-EnactmentUnderstanding Re-Enactment (Conflict Cycle)Conflict Cycle)

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Implicit & Explicit MemoryImplicit & Explicit Memory

• If brain’s ability to translate an implicit memory into explicit memory (right brain to left brain) has been blocked

• Memory is triggered in right brain (implicit memory) without any awareness (explicit memory) that a memory is being triggered

• Instead of feeling like one is remembering a past event, the individual feels that he or she is actually in the event

(Siegel, 1999)

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Client remembers nothing (at least not consciously), but expresses it in action

Repetition Compulsion (Conflict Cycle)

“The compulsion to repeat…replaces the impulse to remember”

The repetitive behavior will persist until the meaning of the behavior comes into consciousness

Memories that have been denied and paradoxically preserved through acting-out symptoms need to be translated into conscious recollection ( i.e., explicit memory)

(Freud 1914/2003)

Aim of repetition compulsion – not to master conflict but to avoid painful memories and feelings (Masterson, 1981)

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Kids & the Repetition Compulsion

They don’t remember the conflict(s) they have repressed but instead keep repeating it in their behavior without being aware that they are doing this (Freud, 1914/2001)

The goal of this behavior (repeating a pattern of behavior over and over again) is to avoid memory and experience of painful feelings (Masterson, 1981)

Why do kids do the same thing over and over again even if it doesn’t seem to work for them?

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Interrupting the Conflict Cycle Interrupting the Conflict Cycle (or the Repetition Compulsion)(or the Repetition Compulsion)

Cognitive-Behavioral - opportunity to learn new skills

Neurobiology - opportunity to: integrate right brain with left brain (more integrated representations) make implicit memory explicit (bring those memories into awareness) create new neural pathways

Psychodynamic – opportunity to : replace repeated acting-out by putting feelings into words create a “coherent narrative” (make sense of one’s experiences)

Attachment – opportunity to: make sense of one’s experience within a secure attachment

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Knowledge of the Youth’s Conflict Knowledge of the Youth’s Conflict Cycle and Awareness of Our Counter-Cycle and Awareness of Our Counter-

Response (Double Struggle)Response (Double Struggle) Enable adult to understand the source of the adult’s feelings that the youth has created or induced in the adult

Help adult not to automatically act on one’s own feelings 

Enable adult to keep one’s feelings from dictating how one should behave and to make decisions on what one believes would be helpful to this youth at this time

 

(Wood & Long, 1991)

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III. Timeline/Coherent NarrativeIII. Timeline/Coherent Narrative

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Developing Coherent Narrative via the Time Line

Discover, by listening and benign questioning, the youth’s perception of the situation (Understanding)

Encourage youth to tell his/her story and feel understood and accepted (Understanding)

Help youth learn to make sense of his/her experience in a way that integrates the reality of the situation (Change)

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Help youth connect a feeling to a Connect feelings to behavior as youth behavior; then youth is less likely is actually experiencing the feeling as to act out this feeling in destructive a result of the interruption of his/her behavior conflict cycle

Translate implicit memory (NV) into explicit memory (V)

LSCI CR Training

Decoding Coherent Narrative

As youth is exposed to feelings and memories that the youth has been able to avoid by re-enacting his/her conflict cycle, the youth is able to face his/her unpleasant reality and make sense of one’s experience by verbalizing with a caring adult

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LSCI Concepts of Double Struggle, LSCI Concepts of Double Struggle, Conflict Cycle, & Time LineConflict Cycle, & Time Line

• Double Struggle Counter-Response

• Conflict CycleConflict Cycle Relational Trauma Re-Enactment (Attachment Style)

• Time LineTime Line Coherent Narrative

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CR INTERVENTIONSCR INTERVENTIONS Counter-Response

Be aware of it Don’t act on itManage the feeling Identify hero/villain roles

Re-Enactment Interrupt it Don’t re-enact it Face unpleasant reality Balance Und/Chg - Do something different

Coherent Narrative

Help youth make sense of one’s experience

(Double Struggle)

(Conflict Cycle)

(Timeline)

splitting

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Implementation and QI Structure

Staff Training

Data collection

Feedback Loop

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Allendale CR TrainingAllendale CR TrainingSM SM Implementation ModelImplementation Model Didactic Presentation – School-wide Group Format

(At all levels of the school, including administrative, supervisory, and pupil support services)

Application and Follow-up

Classroom Team-Based Individualized Treatment Planning

Parent and Classroom Conflict Cycle-Focused Dialogue Meeting

Individual Counter-Response Training for Professional Development

Community-Based Emergency Responders (Police, Paramedics); Public School Educational Staff; Clinical Supervisors; Psychologist, Social Workers, and Other Mental Health Professionals Dealing with Traumatized Youth; Conflictual Couples

Individual Counter-Response Training for Staff Corrective Action

Engagement through Parent Clinical Consultation

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QI Structure

Data collection Identification of student’s conflict cycle and tracking of manifested behaviors (truancy, noncompliance, aggression, self-harm, etc.) – creates evidence for informed decision making.

Level of positive engagement (attendance, interest in extracurricular activities, grades/credit earnings, etc.)

Level of parent engagement

Annual academic progress

Feedback LoopData collection continually informs treatment process and treatment goals, provides evidence of the effectiveness of interventions, or lack thereof to support the adults in determining what to do differently.