“Okay, What Do We Do Now?!” A Qualitative Study of Transition Home Following Youth Residential Treatment

Abstract

When a parent anticipates a child's return home from residential treatment, there are many fears of the unknown. In order to better understand the process of transition from residential treatment to home, 17 families who were identified as having made especially effective transitions home, were queried in 38 separate interviews (14 fathers, 13 mothers, and 11 daughters). These findings were cross-fertilized with insights from another interview study of 125 families. Key themes from these interviews, relevant to successful transition, include (a) transferring groundwork to home, (b) navigating fear and expectations, (c) beginning to trust one's child, (d) caution about threatening social influencesl (e) structure that works for one's family, (f) an enriching atmosphere at home, (g) parent willingness to change, and (h) the possibility of bounce-back. Overall, we observed that families who largely operate out of panic or perfectionism appear, in many cases, to respond in reactive ways that place their daughter at greater risk for experiencing transitional problems. We share these findings in order to help professionals and parents facilitate a more comfortable and successful transition experience for youth and families.

Keywords:

• residential treatment
• therapeutic boarding schools
• treatment
• youth/adolescent
• transition home
• qualitative research
• family time
• expectancy effect

Acknowledgments

Alpine Academy is affiliated with Utah Youth Village, one of Utah's oldest charities providing treatment to children and families in crisis.

Notes

1. Quotes are labeled according to the numerical order of the interview from which they were taken, as well as the individual queried (f = father, m = mother, d = daughter).

2. Text in brackets has been inserted by the author to summarize details or clarify the meaning of a quote. When text is between parentheses, however, it comes directly from the parent or daughter. Both are evident in this sentence.

3. Not incidentally, the parents who emphasized their inability to replicate basic family schedule and bonding patterns, typically also had a girl who continued to struggle post-treatment.