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Abstract
Brain injury can lead to short- or long-term problems that may affect all aspects of a person’s life, including the ability to work, how they build relationships with others, changes in feelings and emotions, and the ability to learn. This study looks to build upon ways to explore posttraumatic growth (PTG) and narratives through an intervention manual with a brain injury population, where individuals were at least 5 years post-injury and who reside at a residential post-acute brain injury facility. Evidence of PTG has been observed as early as a few months post-injury to more than 20 years post-injury; however, there are a limited number of existing studies and literature connecting this to resilience and personal narratives through intervention research. This dissertation research will pilot and evaluate the efficacy of an intervention through a mixed-methods, pre- and post-longitudinal cohort design that will be employed for the initial phase of intervention development for the Group Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy Program (GCRTP). The findings showed that the GCRTP does increase the PTG of individuals with brain injury through increased PTGI-SF scores post-intervention and that participation in the GCRTP does enhance individual learning outcomes. Further efficacy testing deemed that the GCRTP did attain the desired outcomes, as the components of the intervention were empirically designed and delivered with fidelity by the facilitators. The discussion includes interpretation and triangulation of qualitative data, as well as limitations of the study and implications for social work practice and research.