What is Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI®)?
At Impact Living Services, we are committed to providing effective, compassionate care for children and youth who have experienced trauma. One of the most powerful tools we use in our work with our Independent Living Program is Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI®). This evidence-based, trauma-informed approach helps children and caregivers build healthy, trusting relationships. But what is TBRI®, and how does it work?
TBRI® is a holistic, therapeutic model developed by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Dr. David Cross at the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development at TCU. It meets the complex needs of children who have experienced trauma, abuse, neglect, or other forms of adversity. These early experiences can significantly impact a child’s development. They affect their ability to form healthy relationships, regulate emotions, and trust others.
TBRI® focuses on addressing these challenges through three core principles:
- Connecting: Building trust and secure relationships between children and caregivers.
- Empowering: Addressing children’s physical and environmental needs to help them feel safe and secure.
- Correcting: Guiding children with gentle, nurturing discipline that helps them learn self-regulation and positive behaviors.
The foundation of TBRI® is the belief that healing happens within the context of healthy relationships. Connecting principles focus on building strong, trusting relationships between children and their caregivers. This involves activities and strategies that enhance attachment and help children feel understood, valued, and loved. Also involved is assisting caregivers in creating an environment that promotes safety and stability. One that meets the child’s sensory needs to help them feel calm and regulated. Correcting principles focus on teaching children appropriate behaviors and helping them develop self-regulation skills.
Using TBRI® with Youth Aging Out of Foster Care
In our Independent Living Programs for youth aging out of foster care, TBRI® provides essential tools for building healthy relationships and coping with the challenges of adulthood.
TBRI® allows us to have difficult conversations with youth from hard places. These connections help youth feel comfortable bringing complex, scary, or unspoken needs to light. One staff member reports, “I can think of one youth in particular that I sat next to in court, and when the judge asked how things were going at Independent Living, she said something I didn’t expect. She said that she appreciated that we treated each day like a new one and that we never held the things that happened yesterday or the mistakes she made against her. This made her get up every day and be willing to try again.
TBRI doesn’t just affect the youth in our care. Staff also has a unique vantage point in handling and approaching behaviors in refreshing ways. Where other services might label behaviors as “attention seeking,” using the TBRI® framework, we can see that a youth is “relationship seeking” under our care.
Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI®) is more than just a set of techniques—it’s a compassionate approach to helping youth heal and thrive. At Impact Living Services, we are proud to incorporate TBRI® into our work, knowing that it makes a profound difference in the lives of those we serve.
Want to learn more about our Independent Living Program? Learn more HERE.