Lessons learned about psychosocial responses to disaster and mass trauma: an international perspective

Reifels, Lennart; Pietrantoni, Luca; Prati, Gabriele; Kim, Yoshiharu; Kilpatrick, Dean G.; Dyb, Grete; Halpern, James; Olff, Miranda; Brewin, Chris R.; O’Donnell, Meaghan

doi:10.3402/ejpt.v4i0.22897

Cited by 88 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…A prime target for child post-disaster interventions is social support (Kassam-Adams, 2014; Reifels et al, 2013). Social support is frequently disrupted for children after disasters (Derivois, Merisier, Cenat, & Castelot, 2014; Gordon-Hollingsworth et al, 2015; Rubens, Vernberg, Felix, & Canino, 2013).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The relationship between social support and posttraumatic stress symptoms among youth exposed to a natural disaster

Lai

Osborne

Piscitello

et al. 2018

European Journal of Psychotraumatology

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Background: Children are a vulnerable population following a natural disaster, due to their age and dependence on adults. The primary presenting problem children report after disasters is posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Prior research suggests that PTSS is inversely related to social support, which is often disrupted after a disaster. Objective: This study examined the relationship between social support (from parents, teachers, and peers) and PTSS in children affected by Hurricane Katrina. The research contributes to the literature by examining the mechanisms that drive this relationship over time. Methods: In this study, 426 children were followed over four timepoints, beginning 3–7 months after Hurricane Katrina and concluding 25–27 months post-hurricane. Three path models analysed the relationship between social support (from parents, teachers, and peers, measured by the Social Support Scale for Children) and PTSS (measured by the UCLA PTSD Reaction Index). Covariates included child age, minority status, gender, perceived life threat, and actual life threat. Nonsignificant paths were trimmed from the final models. Global fit indices were examined to determine model fit. Results: In the parent and peer social support models, PTSS exhibited statistically significant effects on social support from one wave to the next. In the teacher model, this was only true between Waves 2 and 3. Social support showed a statistically significant effect on PTSS between Wave 2 and Wave 3 in the peer model (standardized estimate = −0.26, p < .0001). No paths from social support to PTSS were significant in the parent and teacher models. Conclusion: Findings support a social selection model in which PTSS undermine social support, particularly in the first two years post-disaster. If these findings are replicated, this suggests that, in cases of limited funding, PTSS should be prioritized, given their cascading effects on social support.

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confidence: 99%

The relationship between social support and posttraumatic stress symptoms among youth exposed to a natural disaster

Lai

Osborne

Piscitello

et al. 2018

European Journal of Psychotraumatology

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“…Various pre‐, peri‐, and posttrauma predictors for symptoms of PTSD have been identified in emergency professionals such as younger age and single status (Fullerton, Ursano, & Wang, ), level of preparation and/or training (Alvarez & Hunt, ), self‐efficacy (Cicognani, Pietrantoni, Palestini, & Prati, ), levels of social support (Reiffels et al., ) the personality trait neuroticism (Engelhard, van den Hout, & Kindt, ), level of exposure to gruesome things such as performing body recovery (Epstein et al., ), and level of supervisor support (Tak, Driscoll, Bernard, & West, ). Finally, tragic life events (Epstein et al., ) and social acknowledgment (Southwick, Morgan, & Rosenberg, ), which is how a person perceives an individual's and/or society's reaction to their difficult experiences (Maercker & Mueller, ) have been found to predict symptoms of PTSD.…”

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confidence: 99%

PTSD Symptom Trajectories in Disaster Volunteers: The Role of Self‐Efficacy, Social Acknowledgement, and Tasks Carried Out

Thormar

Sijbrandij

Gersons

et al. 2016

Journal of Traumatic Stress

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Millions of volunteers respond after disasters, with a 24% to 46% risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is unclear which symptom trajectories develop and how they differ between core (volunteering before the disaster) and noncore volunteers (joining after the disaster) and which factors predict trajectories. Symptoms of PTSD were assessed at 6-, 12-, and 18-months postearthquake in 449 volunteers in Indonesia. Demographics, previous mental health service use, self-efficacy, social acknowledgment, and type of tasks were assessed at 6 months. In both core and noncore volunteers, 2 PTSD symptom trajectories emerged: a resilient trajectory (moderate levels of symptoms with a slow decrease over time; 90.9%) and a chronic trajectory (higher levels of symptoms with an increase over time; 9.1%). In both trajectories, core volunteers had fewer symptoms than noncore volunteers. Core volunteers in the chronic trajectory were characterized by having sought prior mental help, reported lower levels of self-efficacy and social acknowledgment, and were more likely to have provided psychosocial support to beneficiaries (Cramér's V = .17 to .27, partial η(2) = .02 to .06). Aid organizations should identify and follow up chronic PTSD trajectories in volunteers, including the noncore, who may be out of sight to the organization after the acute response phase.

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“…Community's acceptance, education and expectation about the recovery process are crucial in setting the stage for collective healing [15]. While the focus of rebuilding one's life from the aftermath taps on people's resiliency, it cannot be the only focus.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Living with Vulnerability and Resiliency: the Psychological Experience of Collective Trauma

Chang¹

2017

Acta Psychopathol

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Large-scale disasters often induce a chain of psychological phenomena that have direct impact on a person's physiological condition, psychological state, functional capacity, interpersonal relationships, communal involvement and spiritual beliefs. Psychological knowledge about the emotional experience, process and impact of responding to a national-scale traumatic event such as the devastated earthquakes, floods, fires, viral outbreaks and terrorist attacks over the globe is often confusing if not overwhelming. Applying over two decades of clinical experience in working closely with the psychologically wounded, the author hereby seeks to deconstruct and introduce a practical model of the Psychological Process of Collective Trauma, accompanied by a novel model of the Resiliency Process of Collective Trauma. To put these two models that essentially illustrate ones' internal state of vulnerability and resiliency, a general understanding of the long-term effects of primary trauma, secondary trauma, retraumatization and multitude grieving is crucial. This report aims to present a simply and clear framework of psychological recovery that can be applied across disciplines in the case of disaster work and the aftercare mental health services. Above all, the learned lesson that the author is humbly sharing is: Being weak is strong, being strong is weak, and being both is needed.

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Lessons learned about psychosocial responses to disaster and mass trauma: an international perspective

Cited by 88 publications

References 35 publications

The relationship between social support and posttraumatic stress symptoms among youth exposed to a natural disaster

The relationship between social support and posttraumatic stress symptoms among youth exposed to a natural disaster

PTSD Symptom Trajectories in Disaster Volunteers: The Role of Self‐Efficacy, Social Acknowledgement, and Tasks Carried Out

Living with Vulnerability and Resiliency: the Psychological Experience of Collective Trauma

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