Beyond Trauma: Cultural and Societal Dynamics

by Rolf J. Kleber (Editor), Charles R. Figley (Editor), Berthold P.R. Gersons (Editor)

Overview

The editors of Beyond Trauma: Cultural and Societal Dynamics have created a volume that goes beyond the individual's psychological dynamics of trauma, exploring its social, cultural, politica!, and ethical dimensions from an international as well as a global perspective. In the opening address as International Chair of the First World Conference of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies on Trauma and Tragedy: The Origins, Management, and Prevention of Traumatic Stress in Today's World, June 22-26, 1992, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, the conference that formed the foundation for the col­ lected chapters in this volume, 1 commented: This meeting is a landmark in accomplishing the Society's universal mission. Our distinguished International Scientific Advisory Committee and Honor­ ary Committee, whose membership was drawn from over 60 countries, the cooperation of six United Nations bodies, and the participation anei endorse­ ment of numerous nongovernmental organizations and institutions attest to the Society's emerging presence as a major international forum for profes­ sionals of ali disciplines working with victims and trauma survivors.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781475794236
Publisher:	Springer US
Publication date:	04/25/2013
Series:	Springer Series on Stress and Coping
Edition description:	Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 1995
Pages:	313
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.03(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction.- 2. Addressing Human Response to War and Atrocity: Major Challenges in Research and Practices and the Limitations of Western Psychiatric Models.- 3. The Severity of the Trauma: Issues about Its Role in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.- 4. A Cognitive Processing Formulation of Posttrauma Reactions.- 5. Beyond the “Victim”: Secondary Traumatic Stress.- 6. The Deficiency of the Concept of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder When Dealing with Victims of Human Rights Violations.- 7. The Development of Treatment Approaches for Victims of Human Rights Violations in Chile.- 8. Cultural Analysis of Research Findings on the Political Instability in the Philippines.- 9. Psychotherapeutic Work with Refugees.- 10. The Prevalence, Trauma, and Sociocultural Causes of Incestuous Abuse of Females: A Human Rights Issue.- 11. What Went Wrong?: Diagnostic and Ethical Problems in Dealing with the Effects of Torture and Repression in South Africa.- 12. Health Problems in Areas Contaminated by the Chernobyl Disaster: Radiation, Traumatic Stress, or Chronic Stress?.- 13. When Political Reality Enters Therapy: Ethical Considerations in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.- 14. Working through the Holocaust: Still a Task for Germany’s Youth?.- 15. Primary Prevention of Traumatic Stress Caused by War.- 16. Epilogue.- About the Editors.

Editorial Reviews

This volume places the causes, consequences, and treatment of trauma in a social and cultural context. The authors assert that the Western definition of post-traumatic stress disorder does not adequately address the complexity of different trauma experiences that necessarily depend on the social construction of the meaning of traumatic events. Through extensive examples by indigenous authors, this book sets out to demonstrate new ways of viewing trauma and its sequelae in specific social contexts. By taking a close look at conceptual, sociopolitical, and ethical issues in the understanding and treatment of the causes and effects of severe trauma, the authors succeed in convincing the reader of the need for a far more comprehensive approach to these issues than the Western tradition has supplied. Although this book was written primarily for psychiatrists, it would be extremely useful to any mental health practitioner dealing with victims of trauma. It also demonstrates examples of innovative research from a variety of social science disciplines. The table of contents is particularly useful in setting forth the excellent organization of this book. The index is also useful in offering general words with subheading phrases for a very specific index search. The authors convincingly assert that trauma and its sequelae exist in social, cultural, political, and ethical contexts that determine the impact of the trauma as well as providing the means for recovery. This extremely well-organized volume explores the conceptual definitions of a wide range of different traumata, investigates the range of social and political contexts in which trauma occur, and examines the ethical implications forprofessionals who treat trauma survivors and the responsibility of these practitioners to the societies they serve. Each major subject area is addressed by several researchers from a diverse assortment of cultures, each contributing unique insights into the specific situation they describe.

Patricia M. Meaden

Goes beyond the psychological dynamics of individuals to explore the social, cultural, political, and ethical dimensions of trauma. The 16 papers, from an international conference in June 1992 in Amsterdam, provide global and multidisciplinary perspectives. Among the topics are the human response to war and atrocity, incestuous abuse of females, stress in areas contaminated by Chernobyl, and German youth coming to terms with the Holocaust. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

‘The editors of this book have created a volume that goes beyond the individual's psychological dynamics of trauma, exploring its social, cultural, political, and ethical dimensions from an international as well as a global perspective.'
Yael Danieli, Director, Group Project for Holocaust Survivors and their Children

From the Publisher