Lessons Learnt on Designing a Community-Based Participatory Research Study on Trauma: A Qualitative Study with Arabic Speaking Refugee Newcomers and Their Service Providers

Few studies engage refugee newcomers in the design phase of a research project even when studying issues that are of significance to them. This preliminary study aimed to engage Arabic speaking refugee newcomers living with trauma and their service providers in designing a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach to the study of trauma within this community. Focus groups with Arabic speaking refugee newcomers and their service providers confirm participants’ views of trauma as a significant issue in their lives, affirm CBPR’s principles of participation and action-oriented research, and highlight the benefit of research that informs the integration of trauma responses within resettlement processes. Lessons learnt about implementing a CBPR approach to studying trauma include addressing power imbalances in research, the essential role of action within research, and the value of experiential knowledge and engagement.

Processes of Change in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Youths: An Approach Informed by Emotional Processing Theory

In this study, we examined processes of change in trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) delivered to a community sample of 81 youths. Emotional processing theory (EPT) is used as an organizational framework. EPT highlights activating and changing pathological trauma-related responses and increasing adaptive responses across cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological domains. We coded sessions during the trauma-narration and -processing phase of TF-CBT to examine the extent to which pathological and adaptive trauma-related responses were activated across domains. Higher scores indicate that more domains (range = 0–4) were activated at a threshold of moderate to high intensity. Curvilinear change (inverted U, increase then decrease) in multimodal negative response scores across sessions predicted improvement in internalizing symptoms and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder after treatment. Linear increases in multimodal positive responses predicted improvement in externalizing symptoms. Findings suggest value in activating and changing both pathological and adaptive trauma responses across multiple domains and examining nonlinear patterns of change.

A Culture of Healing

The authors of this chapter contextualize terms such as individual trauma, collective trauma, and toxic stress; discuss how trauma impacts school environments; and propose steps to triage traumatic effects among faculty, staff, and students. Based on existing research and studies conducted by the authors of this chapter, strategies are introduced to help school leaders and teachers to overcome the effects of trauma and create a safe culture of healing during and after a traumatic event. While the context surrounding immediate trauma responses may default to macro-level discussions like violence, school shooting incidents, and school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is noteworthy to underscore less-publicized traumatic events such as adverse childhood experiences, adult workplace trauma, and collective organizational trauma. The authors provide case studies to help practitioners process organizational trauma scenarios.

Hate Crimes and Race-Based Trauma on Latinx Populations: A Critical Review of the Current Research

Traditionally, the literature has sought to understand the impact of racial minority status and trauma as it relates to interpersonal violence, domestic violence, and sexual assault. What has not been as extensively reviewed and summarized is how racially or ethnically motivated hate crimes impact the mental health of minorities—particularly Latinx/Hispanic groups. This review aims to summarize the current body of literature on the intersection of race-motivated hate crime and trauma responses within Latinx community. To do so, the theoretical foundation for this inquiry will build from a race-based trauma perspective. Specifically, this review connects existing frameworks for race and trauma and integrates literature that examines Latinx or Hispanic populations that have experienced discrimination, bias, or hate crime as a result of their identity or perceived identity. The importance of situating bias or hate events within the trauma literature stems from a lack of overall formal evaluation of these events, and how these occurrences are historically overlooked as a traumatic stressor. The findings of this review suggest that (1) experiencing racially motivated victimization can cause adverse mental and physical health outcomes in Latinxs and (2) currently, there is only one study that has examined the impact of hate crime on Latinxs in the United States. This leaves the field with unanswered questions about the impact of hate crime victimization among Latinxs, which is an ever-growing area in need of attention.

Behaviour: Promoting inclusion using a trauma-informed approach

Children and young people who have experienced trauma may exhibit challenging behaviour as a result of learned trauma responses. Pooky Knightsmith provides some practical advice for school staff members on providing a more inclusive trauma-informed approach.

Computing Brain White and Grey Matter Injury Severity in a Traumatic Fall

In the real world, the severity of traumatic injuries is measured using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS). However, the AIS scale cannot currently be computed by using the output from finite element human computer models, which currently rely on maximum principal strains (MPS) to capture serious and fatal injuries. In order to overcome these limitations, a unique Organ Trauma Model (OTM) able to calculate the threat to the life of a brain model at all AIS levels is introduced. The OTM uses a power method, named Peak Virtual Power (PVP), and defines brain white and grey matter trauma responses as a function of impact location and impact speed. This research has considered ageing in the injury severity computation by including soft tissue material degradation, as well as brain volume changes due to ageing. Further, to account for the limitations of the Lagrangian formulation of the brain model in representing hemorrhage, an approach to include the effects of subdural hematoma is proposed and included as part of the predictions. The OTM model was tested against two real-life falls and has proven to correctly predict the post-mortem outcomes. This paper is a proof of concept, and pending more testing, could support forensic studies.

Outcomes of Participation in a Service Dog Training Program for Veterans with PTSD

Canine-assisted interventions have emerged as an increasingly popular means to engage and assist veterans coping with military-associated trauma responses. The present study evaluates the use of a 14-week service dog training program for these trauma-impacted veterans. The service dog program guides veterans in small group cohorts on how to train their own dog to be their personal service animal. All 71 veterans participating in this investigation had been diagnosed with PTSD. Fifty-five veterans (77%) finished the entire 14-week program and took all pretests and posttests. Compared to pretest scores, participants reported significant decreases in self-disturbance, posttraumatic stress, externalization, and somatization after completing the program. Participants experienced significant reductions in a broad scope of psychological impacts associated with their PTSD including interpersonal difficulties and suicidality. Findings provide evidence that service dog training programs may be an effective therapeutic alternative to traditional approaches that PTSD-impacted veterans are willing to utilize.

Understanding trauma and its relevance to child sexual exploitation

This chapter provides a brief overview of the research on trauma, specifically in relation to the impact of developmental and complex trauma and sexual abuse. An overview of the growing body of research on trauma-informed approaches to practice is also given. It considers how trauma responses are developed while enduring extreme stress, and how these responses may be evident among children and young people with child sexual exploitation (CSE) experiences. The chapter also considers how systems designed to protect and support traumatised children and young people often contribute to their re-traumatisation. It explores principles of trauma-informed practice that are useful in meeting the needs of young people victimised by CSE, discusses how trauma-informed approaches align with strengths-based and relationship-based approaches to CSE practice, and how such approaches can help practitioners understand and promote resilience.

Genes, Childhood Trauma, and Late Life Depressive Symptoms

Objectives: Findings on gene-environment correlations suggest childhood “environments” may reflect genetic liabilities. The independent psychosocial influence of childhood trauma is unclear. This study examined such effects on adulthood depressive symptoms. Methods: Data were from the Health and Retirement Study. Trauma items included childhood physical abuse and parental substance abuse. Multinomial logit models examined genetic effects on stable and unstable reports. Linear growth models tested associations of stable trauma responses, genes, and their interaction with current depressive symptoms. Results: Genetic risk predicted both stable and unstable trauma reports. With genes controlled, stable responses were associated with life course variations but not late life change in depression. The exception was women’s physical abuse, which moderated genetic effects but had no independent influence. Discussion: Apparent gene-trauma correlations may be driven by flawed retrospective reports. Research is needed to distinguish true from artifactual genetic effects on other environmental factors and establish psychosocial implications.