A program for young adults providing educational, vocational, and emotional growth opportunities.
Interpersonal Growth
A core feature of the Cornerstones program is the experience of living with others in a home that simultaneously nurtures independence and community. The daily routine of our residences was partially designed to facilitate collaborative living and interpersonal growth. Alongside our work to help our residents develop individual life skills, we also work with them to learn to live collaboratively with others. This includes every component of the interpersonal experience from discussing conflicts and struggles to practical aspects, such as dividing chores and household responsibilities. Living with others is an illuminating process that facilitates deep insights into who we are, how we experience others, and the world around us. Through the support of our staff, residents will develop important insights from these experiences. These insights lead to effective interpersonal skills and are a fundamental part of our clinical work.
Our therapeutic milieu allows our staff to gain tremendous insight into how our residents function interpersonally. These insights are brought into individual and group therapy and are used in a sensitive and constructive manner to aid our residents in growing interpersonally and developing more resilient and fulfilling interpersonal relationships.
The development of healthy and meaningful interpersonal relationships is an important milestone for young adults. Relationships have been shown to be an integral part of the development of a strong sense of self and greater resiliency. Feeling connected with others promotes brain development, self-esteem, creativity, and success. Researchers in the area of neurology, such as Dr. Daniel Segal, have highlighted the importance of interpersonal relationships on our well-being. Dr. Segal adopted the term “integration” to describe the physiological and psychological reaction that occurs via the interpersonal processes. His findings suggest that interpersonal processes shape the brain, encouraging cognitive flexibility, as well as improving psychological well-being.