Broadening perspectives on trauma and recovery: a socio-interpersonal view of PTSD^†

Abstract

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the very few mental disorders that requires by definition an environmental context—a traumatic event or events—as a precondition for diagnosis. Both trauma sequelae and recovery always occur in the context of social–interpersonal contexts, for example, in interaction with a partner, family, the community, and the society. The present paper elaborates and extends the social–interpersonal framework model of PTSD. This was developed to complement other intrapersonally focused models of PTSD, which emphasize alterations in an individual's memory, cognitions, or neurobiology. Four primary reasons for broadening the perspective from the individual to the interpersonal–societal contexts are discussed. The three layers of the model (social affects, close relationships, and culture and society) are outlined. We further discuss additional insights and benefits of the social–interpersonal perspective for the growing field of research regarding resilience after traumatic experiences. The paper closes with an outlook on therapy approaches and interventions considering this broader social–interpersonal perspective on PTSD.

A decennial review of psychotraumatology: what did we learn and where are we going?

“…New and promising perspectives include the role of oxytocin in social relationships and bonding after trauma (Olff, 2012;Olff et al, 2014), although the neurobiology behind social support, and e. g. the role of sex/gender still is far from understood (Engel et al, subm) and the development of interventions for victims of violence that aim to increase levels of social support (Hansen, Eriksen, & Elklit, 2014). It seems that social interactions cannot be fully understood from a purely individual perspective, and new contributions highlight the need for a societal or ecological approach (Ajduković, 2013;Biruski, Ajdukovic, & Stanic, 2014;Bryant, 2016;Maercker & Hecker, 2016). More research is also needed on how to manage a lack of recognition or worse disapproval by society as we may see after, e.g.…”

The impact of culture on cognitive appraisals: Implications for the development, maintenance, and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder

“…However, PTSD interventions may also need to focus on close relationships, such as evidence-based couple and family interventions (see Monson, Wagner, Macdonald, & Brown-Bowers, 2015). Such interventions, however, are in their infancy and need further research (Maercker & Hecker, 2016). Finally, interventions could target the culture and society level (e.g., giving people a voice and facilitating identity, value, and meaning reconstruction).…”

The Parent Trauma Response Questionnaire (PTRQ): development and preliminary validation

“…One factor identified as a robust predictor of a child’s post-trauma psychological outcomes is their perceived social support (Kolaitis, 2017; Maercker & Hecker, 2016; Trickey, Siddaway, Meiser-Stedman, Serpell, & Field, 2012). Following a child’s experience of trauma, parents are often the primary source of support (Marsac, Donlon, Winston, & Kassam-Adams, 2013) and meta-analytic findings have confirmed that parenting style has a small yet significant impact on a child’s post-trauma mental health (Williamson, Creswell, Fearon et al, 2017).…”