Survivors of Sex Trafficking: Occupation-Based Intervention for Executive Functioning

Abstract

Persons traumatized through sex trafficking can demonstrate executive function (EF) deficits. We explored whether occupation-based (OB) interventions used with females who had been trafficked would improve EF skills. Eight women engaged programing over eight months. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM), Executive Function Performance Test (EFPT), and the Occupational Therapy Task Observation Scale (OTTOS) were used to measure occupational performance, EF skills, and task behaviors before and after intervention. Gains seen in occupational performance and task behavior were significant: t (7) = −2.49, p = .04, with large effect (d = 0.88). Findings suggest OB interventions may improve EF skills in sex-trafficked women.