Treatment of Social Competence After Traumatic Brain Injury

GIST groups consist of 8 group participants and two group therapists. Group members receive the workbook and are asked to bring it to each session. During each of the 13, 1.5 hour sessions, key concepts from the previous session are reviewed, a new topic is discussed, strategies and skills are practiced interactively, and real-life social problems are addressed. Previously covered topics are integrated into each session through discussion and problem solving to provide repetition and reinforcement of information.

Participants in the alternative treatment will attend 13 weekly classroom sessions, where they will view video presentations of the same curriculum topics covered in the GIST workbook. The group therapists will serve as moderators and will meet with participants individually. Group interaction will not be encouraged. Homework exercises will be offered but participants will not be asked to return their homework and will not receive any feedback.