Imagine a simple yet powerful tool that helps people reconnect with their strengths and cultural roots. The "Tree of Life" is a narrative-based therapeutic intervention that does just that. Following last week's blog post on strengths-based interventions [Harnessing the Power of Strengths-Based Mental Skills Training (MST) for Youth Development ], we at The SPRINT Project have been inspired to develop a useful "Tree of Life" strength-based tool that you can use at home [Interactive tree of life | The Sprint Project]. Let's explore how this approach fosters resilience, self-efficacy, and emotional well-being.
A quick reminder about strengths-based approaches
A strengths-based approach focuses on identifying and building upon individual strengths and resources rather than concentrating on vulnerabilities. This method encourages individuals to recognize their capabilities, promoting resilience and self-efficacy. Hence, it is a powerful tool for supporting mental health and well-being.
Introducing the Tree of Life
The Tree of Life started with Ncazelo Ncube-Mlilo, a child psychologist from Zimbabwe, through generating narratives for vulnerable children (Ncube, 2006). This was then co-developed into an activity with David Denborough at the Dulwich Centre in Australia.
The Tree of Life activity is a narrative-based therapeutic intervention. It uses the metaphor of a tree to help participants articulate their life stories, focusing on their skills, hopes, and dreams. It allows participants to express themselves safely without being re-traumatized and to celebrate their lives (Ncube, 2006).
By emphasizing these strengths, the approach helps individuals build resilience and a more positive outlook on life. This strengths-based perspective is central to fostering emotional healing and well-being. Each part of the tree symbolizes different aspects of their lives, helping participants articulate their life stories in a positive and empowering way:
Roots: History and significant life influences
Ground: Current life
Trunk: Skills and values
Branches: Hopes and dreams
Leaves: Supportive people in their lives
Fruits: Gifts received
Image description: Lone tree in a field against
a blue sky with streaks of cloud
Using the Tree of Life to build strengths
The Tree of Life activity, based on narrative therapy, strengths-based methodology, and cultural sensitivity, supports diverse groups—including children, youth, and adults facing adversity, such as trauma, poverty, conflict, health challenges, and natural disasters — while also benefiting caregivers and mental health professionals. The activity promotes self-reflection, cultural connection, and empowerment for people in various challenging circumstances. But it can help anyone to reconnect with their strengths and values and build resilience as well as enhance focus and emotional regulation.
How does the activity achieve this?
Narrative Therapy Approach: Using the metaphor of a tree, you can explore different aspects of your life such as life influences, the skills and values that provide you with stability and identity, and your hopes and dreams. Using this process allows you to organize and share your story in a way that helps to highlight your resilience and personal growth.
Strengths-Based Methodology: Rather than focusing on problems or challenges you may have faced, the Tree of Life emphasizes your accomplishments. For example, the supportive people or relationships in your life [another strengths-based approach that recognises supportive people is our Interactive dream team | The Sprint Project] or gifts you have received, such as kindness. This again encourages self-recognition of your capabilities and acknowledgement of people who have helped you, reinforcing confidence and a sense of empowerment.
Cultural Sensitivity: Finally, the activity allows you to integrate cultural beliefs, values, and traditions into your life narrative. By reconnecting with your "roots," you can celebrate your heritage and affirm your identity. Providing participants with opportunities to stay connected to their families, values and cultural traditions. This is particularly meaningful for those who have experienced cultural disconnection or transition.
An Example of The Tree of Life in action!
A study by Hughes (2014) demonstrated how the Tree of Life activity has been shown to support vulnerable children from refugee backgrounds. This method was especially effective for children and their parents who have experienced trauma, as it allowed them to express themselves in a non-threatening and culturally sensitive way. Here are some of the notable benefits:
Improved Self-Confidence and Social Skills: Participation in this activity led to increased self-confidence, better social relationships, and positive behavioural changes among children.
Resilience and Coping Mechanisms: The activity helped children develop resilience by providing tools to cope with adversity and trauma, enabling them to transition from mere survival to thriving.
Accessible and Non-Stigmatizing: By offering an alternative to traditional mental health services, the Tree of Life is more accessible and acceptable for many children, avoiding the stigma that can be associated with mental health settings.
In conclusion, the study authors found the Tree of Life activity to be an innovative and empathetic therapeutic intervention that empowers individuals to share their stories, recognize their strengths, and build resilience. Its positive impact on self-confidence, social skills, and coping mechanisms highlights its potential. This paper shows the utility of the tool in ‘hard to reach’ communities, but it can also be adapted for use with other groups.
Introducing Our Interactive Tool
We have developed an interactive Tree of Life tool to guide strengths-based discussions that is free for anyone to use. This tool is designed to be used in familiar and comfortable settings, avoiding the stigma of traditional mental health environments. By introducing this tool, we hope to provide a practical resource that can be used to build strength and resilience through storytelling and positive self-reflection.
Click the button below to have a go!
Example Workshop Plan
Tips for Facilitating Discussion:
Encourage Openness: Remind students that sharing is voluntary and they should only share what feels comfortable.
Model Vulnerability: If you feel comfortable, share a personal example of what might go in each section of your own "Tree of Life" to set the tone.
Create a Respectful Environment: Emphasize respect and confidentiality for shared personal information.
Recognising our strengths can sometimes be a challenging task. When delivering the tree of life workshop, it may be beneficial to encourage participants to support in recognising each other's strengths. Other strengths-based tools such as Interactive strengths profiling | The Sprint Project can also be useful for this.
If you're inspired by the potential of the Tree of Life activity, consider incorporating it into your work or sharing it with others who can benefit. Let's help more individuals reconnect with their strengths and build resilience!
Our other strengths-based resources
References
Denborough, D. (2008). Collective narrative practice (pp. 72-98). Adelaide: Dulwich Centre Publications.
Catholic Relief Services https://www.crs.org/sites/default/files/tools-research/tree-of-life.pdf
Hughes G. Finding a voice through ‘The Tree of Life’: A strength-based approach to mental health for refugee children and families in schools. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 2014;19(1):139-153. doi:10.1177/1359104513476719
Ncube, N. (2006). The tree of life project. International Journal of Narrative Therapy & Community Work, 2006(1), 3-16.
Image credit Canva
Written by Tasha-Jordan Dewhurst, Dr Georgia Bird, & Professor Jennifer Cumming
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