Effectiveness of an Intensive Experiential Group Therapy Program in Promoting Mental Health and Well-Being Among Mass Shooting Survivors: A Practice-Based Pilot Study

This longitudinal intervention study examines the effectiveness of a 6-day intensive experiential group therapy program for survivors of mass shootings. The sample consisted of 36 participants (83.33% female; Mage = 41.66, SDage = 22.52) who survived a mass shooting episode in the U.S. Self-reported mental health (i.e., PTSD, depression, and anxiety symptoms), physical health (i.e., sleep disturbance, subjective health complaints), and flourishing were assessed at baseline (T0), end of treatment (T1), 1-month follow-up (T2), 3-month follow-up (T3), and 6-month follow-up (T4). Satisfaction with the treatment was evaluated at T1. After controlling for relevant sociodemographic characteristics, multilevel modeling results revealed significant improvements in PTSD (d = −0.86, p <.001), depression (d = −0.76, p <.001), anxiety (d = −0.89, p <.001), and flourishing (d = 0.52, p =.003) at T1. There was weak evidence in support of an improvement in sleep disturbance from T0 to T1 (d = −0.30, p =.054), and the reduction in subjective health complaints was negligible (d = −0.03, p =.847). Posttreatment gains were largely maintained at T2 through T4, with some fluctuations and further gains evidenced over time. Treatment satisfaction ratings at the end of treatment were high.