Secondary Traumatic StressTIESCNCT07843914
Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care for Social Work Students During Field Practicum
A study testing Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop and Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions in people with Secondary Traumatic Stress, run by Manisa Celal Bayar University at 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye).
Trial summary
This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention in reducing secondary traumatic stress among undergraduate social work students completing their field practicum. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 20 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Secondary Traumatic Stress
- What is being tested?
- Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop and Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 80 participants
- Where
- 1 siteTurkey (Türkiye)
- Study dates
- 25 Sep 2026to 30 Jan 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 20 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Fourth-year undergraduate student enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year
- Enrolled in the required Social Work Practice course
- Actively completing a field practicum involving direct professional contact with social work clients
- Willing to participate in the study and able to provide written informed consent
Who cannot join
- Not actively participating in the required field practicum at the time of enrollment
- No direct professional contact with social work clients during the practicum
- Declining or being unable to provide written informed consent
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Turkey (Türkiye)1 site
Manisa Celal Bayar University Faculty of Health Sciences Department of Social Work Manisa, Türkiye
Manisa, 45020
Hakan Baydur, Prof.Dr., 05067021872, hakan.baydur@gmail.com
About this study
Official title: Effectiveness of a Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention in Undergraduate Social Work Students: A Protective Intervention Study Against Secondary Traumatic Stress
This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention in reducing secondary traumatic stress among undergraduate social work students completing their field practicum.
During field education, social work students may have direct professional contact with individuals affected by child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, poverty, loss, and other potentially traumatic experiences. Repeated indirect exposure to clients' traumatic experiences may place students at risk for secondary traumatic stress.
Read more
A total of 80 fourth-year undergraduate social work students will participate in the study. Participants will be allocated to an intervention group (n=40) or a control group (n=40) according to the geographic location of their routine field practicum. Students completing their field practicum in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, whereas students completing their field practicum outside Manisa Province, including İzmir and other provinces, will constitute the control group.
The intervention group will receive a two-hour Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care workshop before or at the beginning of field practicum, followed by three structured self-help and peer-sharing group sessions during the practicum period. The control group will continue the routine field practicum process and standard university internship orientation without receiving the study-specific intervention during the study period.
Secondary traumatic stress will be assessed repeatedly in both groups throughout the approximately four-month practicum period. Psychological resilience will be assessed at baseline as a supportive participant characteristic. Intervention-related knowledge and skills will also be assessed in the intervention group.
The primary hypothesis is that students participating in the Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention will demonstrate a more favorable change in secondary traumatic stress over time compared with students in the control group.
Read the detailed description
This prospective, non-randomized, parallel-group, quasi-experimental controlled study will be conducted among fourth-year undergraduate students enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year.
Participants will not be individually randomized. Group allocation will be based on the geographic location of the students' routine field practicum assignments. Students completing their practicum in institutions located in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, while students completing their practicum in İzmir or other provinces outside Manisa will constitute the control group. This geographical separation is intended to reduce contamination between intervention and control participants.
The study will include 80 participants, with 40 participants in each study arm.
Before beginning regular client contact in the field, baseline data will be collected using a sociodemographic information form, the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, the Resilience Evaluation Scale, and, where applicable, the Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention Module Knowledge and Skills Assessment Form.
Following baseline assessment, participants in the intervention group will receive a two-hour interactive Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care workshop. The workshop will address the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, coping with professional stress, breathing and grounding techniques, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies.
After students begin direct professional contact with clients, approximately during the fourth week of practicum, secondary traumatic stress will be reassessed in both groups. Following this assessment, the intervention group will participate in the first structured Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group session.
Two additional structured group sessions will be conducted during the remainder of the practicum period. These sessions will provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which students can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the impact of difficult cases, review coping and self-care practices, receive peer support, and strengthen strategies for managing indirect exposure to trauma.
Data collection will take place at four main time points: baseline during the orientation period before or at the beginning of field practicum; approximately four weeks after the beginning of client contact; toward the end of November; and at the end of the practicum period in mid-December.
The control group will continue the standard field practicum and routine academic internship orientation and will not receive the study-specific Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention or structured peer-support sessions during the evaluation period.
After completion of study assessments, participants in the control group may, upon request, receive the educational module and the Trauma-Informed Self-Care Guide.
The primary effectiveness analysis will focus on differences in changes in secondary traumatic stress over time between the intervention and control groups, particularly the group-by-time interaction.
- Conditions
- Secondary Traumatic Stress
- Being tested
- Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop, Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions
- Keywords
- Social work students, secondary traumatic stress, trauma-informed education, self-care, psychological resilience, peer support, social work education
- Medical subject headings
- Compassion Fatigue
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational WorkshopBehavioural
Participants in the intervention arm will receive a 2-hour interactive psychoeducational workshop before or at the beginning of field practicum. The workshop covers trauma-informed practice, the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, secondary traumatic stress, stress-management strategies, breathing and grounding exercises, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies.
Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group SessionsBehavioural
Participants in the intervention arm will participate in three structured 60-minute small-group sessions conducted during the field practicum. The sessions provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which participants can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the emotional impact of difficult cases, receive peer support, review self-care practices, and reinforce coping and emotional regulation strategies.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention | Experimental | Participants in this arm will receive the standard university internship orientation and routine field practicum activities in addition to two study-specific behavioral interventions: a 2-hour Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop and three structured 60-minute Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions conducted during the field practicum. Receives: Behavioral: Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop; Behavioral: Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions |
| Standard Field Practicum and Internship Orientation | No intervention | Participants in this arm will continue their routine field practicum and receive the standard academic internship orientation provided by the university. They will not receive either of the study-specific behavioral interventions during the study evaluation period. After completion of all study assessments, participants may receive the educational module and a digital Trauma-Informed Self-Care Guide upon request. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale Total Score
Secondary traumatic stress will be assessed using the 17-item Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. Each item is rated on a five-point Likert scale. Total scores range from 17 to 85, with higher scores indicating greater secondary traumatic stress and therefore a worse outcome.
The scale will be administered at baseline and at three follow-up assessments during the field practicum. The primary outcome will be the change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale total scores over time and the difference in this change between the intervention and control groups.
Measured: Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum
Secondary outcomes (1)
Change From Baseline in Resilience Evaluation Scale Total Score
Psychological resilience will be assessed using the 9-item Turkish version of the Resilience Evaluation Scale. Total scores range from 0 to 36, with higher scores indicating greater psychological resilience and therefore a better outcome.
The scale will be administered at baseline and at three follow-up assessments during the field practicum. Changes in Resilience Evaluation Scale total scores over time will be compared between the intervention and control groups.
Measured: Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted28 Sep 2026
- Study start25 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion20 Jan 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Jan 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Secondary Traumatic StressStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- Participants will be assigned to one of two parallel study arms according to the geographic location of their routine field practicum. Students completing their practicum in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, whereas students completing their practicum outside Manisa Province will constitute the control group. Individual randomization will not be performed.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Manisa Celal Bayar University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Hakan Baydur, Manisa Celal Bayar University
- Investigators
- Hakan Baydur, Principal investigator, Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07843914
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- Trauma-Informed Education
- Acronym
- TIESC
- Status last verified
- Sep 2026
- First submitted
- 16 Sep 2026
- Last updated
- 1 Oct 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: IPD will not be shared due to participant confidentiality and the potential risk of re-identification in this relatively small, single-institution student sample. Study findings will be reported in aggregate form.
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 1 Oct 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Effectiveness of a Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention in Undergraduate Social Work Students: A Protective Intervention Study Against Secondary Traumatic Stress
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07843914
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- TIESC / Trauma-Informed Education
- Conditions
- Secondary Traumatic Stress
- Keywords
- Social work students, secondary traumatic stress, trauma-informed education, self-care, psychological resilience, peer support, social work education
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Manisa Celal Bayar UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 25 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- 20 Jan 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Jan 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 28 Sep 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a structured Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention in reducing secondary traumatic stress among undergraduate social work students completing their field practicum.
During field education, social work students may have direct professional contact with individuals affected by child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, poverty, loss, and other potentially traumatic experiences. Repeated indirect exposure to clients' traumatic experiences may place students at risk for secondary traumatic stress.
A total of 80 fourth-year undergraduate social work students will participate in the study. Participants will be allocated to an intervention group (n=40) or a control group (n=40) according to the geographic location of their routine field practicum. Students completing their field practicum in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, whereas students completing their field practicum outside Manisa Province, including İzmir and other provinces, will constitute the control group.
The intervention group will receive a two-hour Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care workshop before or at the beginning of field practicum, followed by three structured self-help and peer-sharing group sessions during the practicum period. The control group will continue the routine field practicum process and standard university internship orientation without receiving the study-specific intervention during the study period.
Secondary traumatic stress will be assessed repeatedly in both groups throughout the approximately four-month practicum period. Psychological resilience will be assessed at baseline as a supportive participant characteristic. Intervention-related knowledge and skills will also be assessed in the intervention group.
The primary hypothesis is that students participating in the Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention will demonstrate a more favorable change in secondary traumatic stress over time compared with students in the control group.
Detailed description
This prospective, non-randomized, parallel-group, quasi-experimental controlled study will be conducted among fourth-year undergraduate students enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year.
Participants will not be individually randomized. Group allocation will be based on the geographic location of the students' routine field practicum assignments. Students completing their practicum in institutions located in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, while students completing their practicum in İzmir or other provinces outside Manisa will constitute the control group. This geographical separation is intended to reduce contamination between intervention and control participants.
The study will include 80 participants, with 40 participants in each study arm.
Before beginning regular client contact in the field, baseline data will be collected using a sociodemographic information form, the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, the Resilience Evaluation Scale, and, where applicable, the Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention Module Knowledge and Skills Assessment Form.
Following baseline assessment, participants in the intervention group will receive a two-hour interactive Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care workshop. The workshop will address the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, coping with professional stress, breathing and grounding techniques, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies.
After students begin direct professional contact with clients, approximately during the fourth week of practicum, secondary traumatic stress will be reassessed in both groups. Following this assessment, the intervention group will participate in the first structured Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group session.
Two additional structured group sessions will be conducted during the remainder of the practicum period. These sessions will provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which students can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the impact of difficult cases, review coping and self-care practices, receive peer support, and strengthen strategies for managing indirect exposure to trauma.
Data collection will take place at four main time points: baseline during the orientation period before or at the beginning of field practicum; approximately four weeks after the beginning of client contact; toward the end of November; and at the end of the practicum period in mid-December.
The control group will continue the standard field practicum and routine academic internship orientation and will not receive the study-specific Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention or structured peer-support sessions during the evaluation period.
After completion of study assessments, participants in the control group may, upon request, receive the educational module and the Trauma-Informed Self-Care Guide.
The primary effectiveness analysis will focus on differences in changes in secondary traumatic stress over time between the intervention and control groups, particularly the group-by-time interaction.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- Participants will be assigned to one of two parallel study arms according to the geographic location of their routine field practicum. Students completing their practicum in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, whereas students completing their practicum outside Manisa Province will constitute the control group. Individual randomization will not be performed.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention | Experimental | Behavioral: Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop, Behavioral: Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group SessionsParticipants in this arm will receive the standard university internship orientation and routine field practicum activities in addition to two study-specific behavioral interventions: a 2-hour Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop and three structured 60-minute Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions conducted during the field practicum. |
| Standard Field Practicum and Internship Orientation | No intervention | –Participants in this arm will continue their routine field practicum and receive the standard academic internship orientation provided by the university. They will not receive either of the study-specific behavioral interventions during the study evaluation period. After completion of all study assessments, participants may receive the educational module and a digital Trauma-Informed Self-Care Guide upon request. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 20 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Fourth-year undergraduate student enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year
- Enrolled in the required Social Work Practice course
- Actively completing a field practicum involving direct professional contact with social work clients
- Willing to participate in the study and able to provide written informed consent
Key exclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Not actively participating in the required field practicum at the time of enrollment
- No direct professional contact with social work clients during the practicum
- Declining or being unable to provide written informed consent
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational WorkshopParticipants in the intervention arm will receive a 2-hour interactive psychoeducational workshop before or at the beginning of field practicum. The workshop covers trauma-informed practice, the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, secondary traumatic stress, stress-management strategies, breathing and grounding exercises, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies. | Behavioural | Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention |
| Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group SessionsParticipants in the intervention arm will participate in three structured 60-minute small-group sessions conducted during the field practicum. The sessions provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which participants can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the emotional impact of difficult cases, receive peer support, review self-care practices, and reinforce coping and emotional regulation strategies. | Behavioural | Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention |
Primary outcome
Change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale Total Score
Time frame: Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum
Secondary traumatic stress will be assessed using the 17-item Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. Each item is rated on a five-point Likert scale. Total scores range from 17 to 85, with higher scores indicating greater secondary traumatic stress and therefore a worse outcome. The scale will be administered at baseline and at three follow-up assessments during the field practicum. The primary outcome will be the change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale total scores over time and the difference in this change between the intervention and control groups.
1 secondary outcome
Change From Baseline in Resilience Evaluation Scale Total Score
Time frame: Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 1 Oct 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No. IPD will not be shared due to participant confidentiality and the potential risk of re-identification in this relatively small, single-institution student sample. Study findings will be reported in aggregate form.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Hakan Baydur principal investigator
Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop and Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions in people with Secondary Traumatic Stress, run by Manisa Celal Bayar University at 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye).
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 1 Oct 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye). Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Hakan Baydur, Prof.Dr. (05067021872, hakan.baydur@gmail.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale Total Score (time frame: Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 1 Oct 2026; AzTrials last refreshed its copy on 6 Nov 2026.