An innovative clinical approach to working with children and adolescents who have been sexually abused - the Internalization Model - is presented in this volume. It is designed to increase the therapist's recognition and understanding of the effects of such abuse on a young victim's internal sense of self and world.

The author argues that abuse-related internalizations, not the symptomatic behaviours resulting from these internalizations, need to be addressed in therapy. Wieland describes a psychodynamic trauma-focused therapy - which includes aspects of psychoanalytic, behavioural and cognitive therapies - which has resulted in positive changes such as children beginning to engage in age-appropriate play and adolescents feeling more sure of themselves. The book also includes a discussion of how a therapist's own internalizations might affect the therapeutic experience.