Race‐related PTSD: The Asian American Vietnam veteran

Abstract

This article presents a conceptual framework by which to understand race-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for the Asian American Vietnam veteran. The framework draws from cognitive schema theory, social behaviorism, the notion of cumulative racism as trauma, and the assumption that bifurcation and negation of one's bicultural identity is injurious. Classifications of race-related stress or trauma that may be experienced by Asian American Vietnam veterans, with exemplifying clinical case material, are presented. These types of stressors include being mistaken for Vietnamese, verbal and physical assaults that are race-related, death and near-death experiences that are race-related, racial stigmatization, dissociation from one's Asian identity, and marginalization. As studies of combat trauma and sexual assault forced the psychological stresses attendant to war and sexist oppression into public consciousness, so this article addresses psychological stress and trauma attendant to racism.

Race/ethnic differences in exposure to traumatic events, development of post-traumatic stress disorder, and treatment-seeking for post-traumatic stress disorder in the United States

“…2008). For example, perceived discrimination, race-related verbal assault and racial stigmatization have been linked to PTSD symptoms and may partially account for the higher conditional risk of PTSD among Blacks (Loo, 1994; Loo et al . 2005; Ellis et al .…”

Managing terror: Differences between Jews and Arabs in Israel

“…The national ethos and shared meaning may enhance the resilience of Jewish‐Israelis when faced with terror‐related challenges. Stigmatization and ethnic discrimination are considered liabilities in the development of PTSD in minority groups (e.g., Loo, 1994). Being aligned with the enemy, facing discrimination, and having their mental health and other needs placed as a lower priority, may all contribute to resource loss, disillusionment, and an exacerbation of mental health symptoms in the face of terrorism.…”

The relationship between intimate partner violence and PTSD: An application of Cox regression with time‐varying covariates

“…Many studies lacked a comparison group of nonabused women and investigated samples of almost exclusively White women; Tolman and Rosen's study is a notable exception (Tolman & Rosen, 2001). Studies of PTSD among people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent are particularly scarce and the few that exist have focused on nonintimate partner violence trauma, such as war-related atrocity (Abueg & Chun, 1996), combatrelated trauma (Loo, 1994), and exposure to civil unrest (Kim-Hog, Chong, Blake, & Hiley-Young, 1995). Only one study examined the relationship between intimate partner violence and posttraumatic stress symptoms among women of Japanese descent in the United States (Yoshihama & Horrocks, 2002).…”