Group Therapy for Earthquake-Related Traumatıc Grıef (TUBITAK)
Developing and Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Group Therapy Plan for Earthquake-Related Traumatic Grief – TÜBİTAK
Project Status: Contract Phase (agreement pending)
ABOUT THE PROJECT
This project, funded by TÜBİTAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye) and currently in the contract phase, aims to develop an innovative, evidence-based group intervention plan to address traumatic grief among individuals affected by the February 6, 2023 earthquakes.
The program is being designed in collaboration with Hasan Kalyoncu University, ensuring both academic rigor and practical implementation opportunities.
APPROACH
A novel group therapy program will be designed based on the principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
The effectiveness of this ACT-based intervention will be evaluated in comparison with the EMDR group protocol, which has already demonstrated efficacy in previous studies.
SIGNIFICANCE
This project aims to fill a critical gap in post-disaster mental health services by focusing specifically on grief processes. By leveraging the advantages of group therapy, it also seeks to reach a larger population in need of psychological support.
A NEW MODEL
At the end of the project, an ACT-based group therapy plan specifically tailored for traumatic grief will have been designed and implemented for the first time; this development will mark a novel contribution to the field of post-disaster psychological interventions, since such a structured group-based ACT model does not currently exist in the literature.
COMPARATIVE EVALUATION
Through the data to be collected, the project will allow for a direct comparative evaluation of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and EMDR group interventions; this will not only demonstrate the relative strengths and weaknesses of both approaches but also provide practitioners and researchers with empirical evidence that may guide future large-scale disaster interventions and clinical applications.
CONTRIBUTION TO THE FIELD
By disseminating the therapy model to professionals and integrating it into training and supervision processes, the project will facilitate capacity building in the mental health field; in doing so, it will contribute to wider community resilience, recovery, and collective healing, thereby filling a gap in international disaster response practices where grief-focused interventions remain scarce.
BROADER IMPACT
Ultimately, the project will support innovation and dissemination at both the national and international levels; by providing an adaptable model for group therapy, it will encourage institutions and practitioners to integrate evidence-based grief interventions into post-disaster services, helping to reduce long-term psychological distress in communities affected by earthquakes and similar large-scale traumatic events.
Project Team
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Burcu Uysal
Project CoordInator
BÜŞRA KAVLA
PROJECT ASSISTANT
MEHMED SEYDA TEPEDELEN
Project ASSISTANT
FİKRİYE BİLGE BİRCAN
Project ASSISTANT
ELİF AKYÜZ
Project ASSISTANT
