Treating Youths With PTSD and Conduct Problems

申请人要求通过辅导职业发展奖（K23）计划提供5年的资金，以提高她在干预研究方法方面的技能和知识，最终目标是开发一个独立的研究计划。该奖项的目的是让申请人建立在她以前的临床和研究经验，表明有行为问题的女青年有很高的PTSD症状，这使治疗工作复杂化。具体而言，拟议的培训目标将在以下领域提供专门的指导和辅导：（1）临床试验的进行，（2）共病PTSD症状和行为问题综合治疗的干预开发，（3）干预研究中心主题的高级统计培训，以及（4）研究伦理行为的培训。研究计划分为三个阶段，以补充拟议的培训活动顺序。在第一阶段，申请人将对治疗PTSD的现有评估和干预措施进行系统评价。在导师的指导下，评估和干预措施将适用于治疗患有行为问题的女青年的创伤后应激障碍症状。在第二阶段，综合干预方案的可行性将在一小部分患有创伤后应激障碍症状和行为问题的女青年中进行测试。在第三阶段，将进行一项小规模的试验性干预试验，以测试综合干预方案与样本的女青年患有创伤后应激障碍症状和行为问题。每个阶段将建立在前几个阶段的基础上，目标是为患有共病行为问题的女青年的创伤后应激障碍症状的治疗提供重复评估和综合干预方案。拟议研究的结果将用于为合并PTSD症状和行为问题的综合治疗提供效应量估计，并最终为申请人提供知识和经验，以进行后续R01应用，并将这项研究扩展到更大，更多样化的样本。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The applicant is requesting 5 years of funding through the Mentored Career Development Award (K23) program to enhance her skills and knowledge in intervention research methodology with the ultimate goal of developing an independent program of research. The purpose of this award is to allow the applicant to build on her previous clinical and research experience indicating that female youths who have conduct problems have high rates of PTSD symptoms, which complicate treatment efforts. Specifically, the proposed training goals will provide specialized instruction and mentoring in the following areas: (1) the conduct of clinical trials, (2) intervention development for the integrated treatment of comorbid PTSD symptoms and conduct problems, (3) advanced statistical training in topics central to intervention research, and (4) training in the ethical conduct of research. The research plan is divided into three phases which complement the proposed sequence of training activities. During Phase I, the applicant will conduct a systematic review of existing assessments and interventions for treating PTSD. Under the guidance of mentors, assessments and interventions will be adapted for the treatment of PTSD symptoms with female youths who have comorbid conduct problems. During Phase II, the feasibility of the integrated intervention protocol will be tested on a small sample of female youths with comorbid PTSD symptoms and conduct problems. During Phase III, a small-scale pilot intervention trial will be conducted to test the integrated intervention protocol with a sample of female youths with comorbid PTSD symptoms and conduct problems. Each phase will build on previous phases, with the goal of producing a repeated assessment and an integrated intervention protocol for the treatment of PTSD symptoms in female youths who have comorbid conduct problems. Findings from the proposed research will be used to provide an effect-size estimate for the integrated treatment of comorbid PTSD symptoms and conduct problems, and ultimately, will provide the applicant with the knowledge and experience to pursue subsequent R01 applications and to expand this research to larger, more diverse samples.