The Impact of Complex Trauma on Occupations and Daily Functioning in Childhood: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Aims

To explore the impact of complex trauma on occupations and daily functioning in childhood through empirical studies and asses the extent and state of available evidence.

Methods

The five-stage scoping review framework by Arksey and O’Malley and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR: Tricco et al.) were followed. EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsychINFO, and Web of Science databases were systematically searched. Included studies were empirical research published in English up to December 2022, reporting on the impact of complex trauma on daily functioning or occupations in children experiencing such trauma, defined as prolonged exposure to interpersonal trauma arising within the primary caregiving system.

Results

Eight studies were included. They reported impacts on personal and instrumental activities of daily living, sleep, education, work, play, leisure, and social participation. Some domains lacked comprehensive investigation, and studies lacked descriptions of specific effects on these areas.

Conclusions

The review reveals a lack of robust empirical evidence on the impact of complex trauma on occupations and daily functioning in childhood, with limited depth for comprehensive analysis on the extent of children’s occupational life impact. Further research is warranted to address identified gaps.

Keywords:

• Children and youth
• complex trauma
• daily functioning
• occupational therapy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Notes on contributors

Síomha Walsh-Garcia

Síomha Walsh-Garcia is currently undertaking PhD research in the Discipline of Occupational Therapy in Trinity College Dublin. She holds a BSc. (Honours) degree in Occupational Therapy and is a CORU registered occupational therapist in Ireland.

Michelle Spirtos

Dr Michelle Spirtos is an Assistant Professor and Head of the Discipline of Occupational Therapy, Trinity College Dublin. Michelle has a BSc OT and a MSc through Research from the Discipline of Occupational Therapy and a PhD through the School of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College Dublin. Michelle has worked with children and young people from birth through to young adulthood and is particularly interested in supporting participation and engagement in youth and in supporting the transition to adulthood for young people with disability experience. She co-ordinates the undergraduate modules related to children and youth and modules on disability studies and occupation.

David Mockler

Mr. David Mockler is the Medical Librarian at Trinity College Dublin since 2002. He has extensive experience in collaborations on systematic reviews in the Allied Health Science disciplines. David provides advice and supports to postgraduate research students in the development of research data management plans, development of search strategies, running systematic searches across multiple databases, Covidence and EndNote management, and maximising research impact.

Katie Cremin

Dr Katie Cremin has been working as an Assistant Professor in the Discipline of Occupational Therapy, Trinity College Dublin since 2002. She completed her PhD in the area of secondary school and students with autism, with a specific focus on parents, teachers and peers. She has experience working in child and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) and remains closely allied to this area in her teaching and research. She co-ordinates the undergraduate occupational therapy modules related to children and youth with Dr Spirtos. Katie has also worked collaboratively with the National Council for Special Education and contributes to teaching Continuing Professional Development courses.