Mental Health and Aggression in Congolese Ex-combatants

Status

Completed

Phases

Phase 2

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT01625117

Enrollment

Registered

2012-06-21

Start date

2011-05-31

Completion date

2012-09-30

Last updated

2013-06-26

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Appetitive Aggression, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Keywords

Treatment of ex-combatants, Narrative Exposure Therapy for ex-combatants, Appetitive Aggression, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Brief summary

The purpose of this study is examine, whether a treatment approach, which is specifically tailored for perpetrators who have participated in violence (a variant of Narrative Exposure Therapy) is effective in the reduction of instrumental aggression and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder.

Detailed description

The reintegration of former child soldiers and ex-combatants is a big challenge in war-torn countries. Former child soldiers and ex-combatants often suffer from mental health problems and show enhanced levels of aggression. The present study focuses on the reduction of appetitive aggression and the improvement of mental health in former child soldiers and ex-combatants in DR Congo.

Interventions

BEHAVIORALA variant of Narrative Exposure Therapy

During the proposed therapy, the client constructs a chronological narrative of his or her whole life which includes all traumatic experiences and perpetrated violent acts. All emotions, cognitions, sensory information, and physiological reactions are activated and linked to the autobiographical context.In five sessions the therapist and the client try to go through all important traumatic experiences and perpetrated violent acts. The sixth session is a group session with four to five clients. The group session is oriented on Interpersonal Psychotherapy and focuses on the role change from soldier to civilian.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

MALE

Age

16 Years to 35 Years

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* Ex-combatants in Congo who live in a re-integration camp

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Appetitive aggression (Appetitive Aggression Scale)	6 months
Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale, PDS)	6 months

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Symptoms of depression (Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview)	6 months
Functionality (Work and Social Adjustment Scale)	6 months

Countries

Republic of the Congo

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026