The Impact of Trauma-Informed Care Education and Training on Aftercare Providers of Sex Trafficking Survivors

Current literature is limited in the field of commercial sex trafficking, and non-existent with regard to the aftercare providers working with survivors in residential treatment facilities. In this preliminary study, the amount of trauma-informed care training and education of 55 aftercare providers who work in residential shelters was measured. Furthermore, a correlational design analyzed the relationship between trauma-informed care education and training and the following trauma response variables: coping strategies, compassion satisfaction, secondary traumatic stress and burnout. Analyses were utilized to determine the effects of aftercare providers with a history of sexual trauma on the trauma responses to working with those who have been commercially exploited for sex. Implications and recommendations for further research are provided.