Parent-Child Interaction Therapy
(PCIT)
Mission
Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an empirically-supported treatment for children ages 2 to 7 that places emphasis on improving the quality of the parent-child relationship and changing parent-child interaction patterns. One primary use is to treat clinically significant disruptive behaviors. In PCIT, parents are taught specific skills to establish a nurturing and secure relationship with their child while increasing their child’s prosocial behavior and decreasing negative behavior. This treatment focuses on two basic interactions: Child Directed Interaction (CDI) is similar to intentional play in that parents engage their child in a play situation with the goal of strengthening the parent-child relationship; Parent Directed Interaction (PDI) resembles clinical behavior therapy in that parents learn to use specific behavior management techniques as they play with their child. PCIT has several unique features which support interaction between parents and children: The therapist does not interact directly with the child and are not in the room for most sessions. Instead, two-way mirrors or cameras and ear pieces provide feedback and suggestions to parents while they are interacting with their child. The average number of sessions is 14, but varies from 10 to 20 sessions. Treatment continues until the parent masters the interaction skills to pre-set criteria and the child's behavior has improved to within normal limits.
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Funded by Nebraska Child Abuse Prevention Fund