Advances in Continuous Traumatic Stress Theory: Traumatogenic Dynamics and Consequences of Intergroup Conflict: The Palestinian Adolescents Case

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to advance the theory of chronic and traumatic stressors that have been identified as type III traumas in the trauma developmentally-based framework (DBTF) and use it to investigate the mental and physical health effects of such traumas on impacted individuals and groups. Participants were 438 Palestinian adolescents from the West Bank who had been exposed to a number of types of trauma including chronic intergroup violence. The age of participants in the sample ranged from 12 to 19 with a mean of 15.66 and SD of 1.43. The sample included 54.6% males, 52.3% resided in cities, 44.4% resided in villages, while 3.2% resided in refugee camps. The study utilized a measure for cumulative traumas that is based on the DBTF and measures of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), cumulative trauma related disorders (CTD), depression, anxiety, collective annihilation anxiety (AA), identity salience, and fear of death. The results of partial correlation and path analyses indicated that continuous traumatic stress was a significant predictor of mental health. The analyses also indicated that poverty predicted identity salience and AA that mediated their negative effects on physical and mental health of Palestinian adolescents. The relevance of these results to peace, social and clinical psychology was discussed.

Gender Discrimination (GD): A Conceptual Trauma-Based Framework for GD and the Development of Gender Discrimination Inventory

“…General Self-Efficacy scale Kira, Ashby, Odenat & Lewandowski, 2013;Kira, Fawzi, & Fawzi, 2013;Kira, Omidy, & Ashby, 2014;Kira, Smith, Lewandowski, & Templin, 2010;Millender, 2013). Alpha for the main scale of occurrence is .80 in the current data.…”

“…GD is one that is chronic and ongoing traumatization that may not stop and stick with the affected person all her/his life (as contrasted with Type I trauma (a single event or blow) and type II trauma which is a set of psychological sequelae that happened in the past and stopped). Type III identity traumas have potential of accumulation and proliferation dynamics and are potentially the most severe, in terms of its impact on health, mental health of the targeted individual and group (Kira, Ashby, Lewandowski et al, 2013).…”

Empirically derived lifespan polytraumatization typologies: A systematic review

“…The term polytraumatization (Gustafsson et al, 2009) captures the experience of a broad array of multiple traumas (count and type). This term is not restricted to (1) interpersonal and/or criminal events (Finkelhor et al, 2007), (2) repeated experiences of a single trauma (complex trauma; Cloitre et al, 2011;Herman, 1992), nor to (3) a sole focus on trauma count (Follette et al, 1996;Kira et al, 2013).…”

A Conceptual Model and Measurement of Identity-Based, Existential Annihilation Anxieties (EAA)

“…The proposed conceptual framework is based on the developmentally-based trauma framework (DBTF) (Kira, 2001;Kira et al, 2013b;Kira et al, 2010;Kira et al, 2015;Kira, Lewandowski, Chiodo, & Ibrahim, 2014;Kira, et al, 2018a), and collective terror management theory (CTMT) (Kira, 2002). According to DBTF and CTMT, EAA may develop in the individual starting with the individuation processes in early adolescence through adulthood.…”

“…For place of residence, 52.3% resided in cities (N = 229), 44.4% resided in villages (N = 195), while 3.2% resided in refugee camps (N = 14). For details see, Kira et al, 2013b. Palestinians adolescents in Gaza (N = 442): Gaza's Participants included 442 adolescents, 47.5% males, and 52.5% females. They included 5% from villages "residents, 50.3% from Gaza city residents, and 44.7% from refugee camps" residents.…”