Constructing Narratives of Resilience with High-Risk Youth

Abstract

An alternative approach to therapy with high-risk youth who are difficult to engage in treatment is discussed. Borrowing from postmodern clinical techniques, therapeutic conversations are used to assist youth in their construction of health-enhancing narratives of resilience. These new identity stories challenge stigmatizing narratives of vulnerability that are constructed about high-risk youth. Three phases of therapy are discussed: reflecting on past and present life experiences to deconstruct their meaning; challenging the discursive power of those who see high-risk youth as mentally ill through the proposal of alternative narratives of resilience; and defining these youth as resilient through the sharing of their new narratives with their peers, family members, and community.