Integrated Theory
Sanctuary As A Living Philosophy
The process of “Creating Sanctuary” begins with getting everyone on the same page – surfacing, sharing, arguing about, and finally agreeing on the basic values, beliefs, guiding principles and philosophical principles that are to guide our decisions, decision-making processes, conflict resolution skills and behavior. There are no shortcuts here. Trauma-informed change requires a change in the basic mental models upon which thought and action is based and without such change, treatment is bound to fall unnecessarily short of full recovery or fail entirely. This change in mental models must occur on the part of the clients, their families, the staff, and the leaders of the organization. Mental models exist at the level of very basic assumptions, far below conscious awareness and everyday function and yet they guide and determine what we can and cannot think about and act upon [1].
The Sanctuary Model is structured around a philosophy of belief and practice informed by the scientific study of attachment and child development and the impact of adversity, toxic stress and trauma. Attachment between parent and child results in the human operating system, while toxic stress disrupts that operating system. Human beings and human organizations are living systems that adapt to changing conditions in complex ways. From these scientific findings new mental models for how we view human problems is beginning to emerge. We use the notion of parallel processes to explain what trauma-informed systems are all about.
Sanctuary as Organizational Operating System
Organizations as Living Systems
Attachment and Disrupted Attachment
Complex Responses to Toxic Events
Group Dynamics & Parallel Process
Violence as a Public Health Issue
Sanctuary Model of Organizational Change
References
- Senge, P., et al., The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook: Strategies and Tools for Building a Learning Organization. 1994, New York: Doubleday.
