Phenomenological experience of girls in a single-sex day treatment group

Popular family-based treatment approaches have generally failed to take into account the unique contextual issues adolescent females face in their development. Gender socialization, cultural stereotypes, and the meaning given to physical changes at puberty are a few of the sociological contexts that are uniquely different for developing adolescent girls as compared to boys. The purpose of the present research was to highlight voices of female adolescents as they shared their experience of being involved in a gender-specific treatment program designed to address the unique issues they faced as developing females. A qualitative methodology included eight interviews of adolescent girls who had participated in a particular gender-specific treatment program. Results suggest that social context is a large and influential part of the developmental context of these young women. Implications are discussed for parents, educators, and marriage and family therapists.