Communication as a Positive Relationship Outcome with Families Participating in a Therapeutic Wilderness Program

Abstract

This chapter is intended, in part, to fulfill the need for more research by providing the results of a research study that examined the positive relationship outcomes that emerged between parent(s) and their adolescent child after participation in the Outward Bound Intercept program. A secondary purpose of this chapter is to provide an example of qualitative research methods that can be effectively used to study adolescents and outcomes in residential settings. In this particular study, a phenomenological approach was used to study nine families who had participated in the program. A basic discussion of phenomenological qualitative research methods is included to help orient the reader and provide some basic information on how to conduct this type of study in residential programs. However, before discussing the method and the results, an overview of the literature on this type of intervention will be provided. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved)