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Trauma and the therapist: Countertransference and vicarious traumatization in psychotherapy with incest survivors
Abstract
"Trauma and the Therapist" explores the role and experience of the therapist in the therapeutic relationship [with adult incest survivors] by examining countertransference (the therapist's response to the client) and vicarious traumatization (the therapist's response to the stories of abuse told by client after client). Therapists' awareness of attunement to these processes will inform their therapeutic interventions, enrich their work, and protect themselves and their clients. The authors also offer many strategies for avoiding the countertransference vicarious traumatization cycle.
The authors' approach is broad, drawing from and synthesizing the diverse literature on countertransference and trauma theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
... . VT may occur through listening to graphic details of extreme trauma, being pulled into trauma reenactments, and encountering human cruelty, among other pathways (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). VT can be cumulative and may result in secondary traumatic stress, which presents similarly to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). ...
... . VT may occur through listening to graphic details of extreme trauma, being pulled into trauma reenactments, and encountering human cruelty, among other pathways (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). VT can be cumulative and may result in secondary traumatic stress, which presents similarly to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). Experiences of VT may be compounded by a therapist's personal trauma history (Cleary et al. 2024;Pearlman and Mac Ian 1995). ...
... There are tools that therapists may find useful for monitoring and managing their self-care, such as the Self-Care Assessment for Psychologists (Dorociak et al. 2017). It may also be helpful to consider that occupational hazards, like VT and vicarious post-traumatic growth, can represent parallel processes (Cleary et al. 2024;Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995;Tsirimokou et al. 2023). ...
Background
Psychotherapists who treat clients with dissociative identity disorder (DID), a trauma‐related condition, have unique experiences and challenges. There is a dearth of literature investigating the experiences and perspectives of therapists who treat clients with DID.
Methodology
We conducted in‐depth semi‐structured interviews with 15 DID‐treating therapists. We used reflexive thematic analysis, drawing upon constructivist and critical paradigms, to generate an understanding of how these therapists experience, relate to, and make sense of their work with clients with DID.
Analysis
We created four primary themes: (1) ‘Here and Now’: Working in the Present to Facilitate Healing for Clients with DID; (2) ‘I Was Made To Do This’: Finding Meaning in the Calling to Work with Clients with DID; (3) ‘Churning my Stomach Up’: From Holding Trauma and Dissociation to Vicarious Traumatisation; and (4) ‘Pulling Back the Veil’: Working with DID as Social Justice Practice.
Conclusions
We recommend therapists work to leverage their experiences and perspectives in positive ways, such as embracing a here and now stance and what is meaningful about the work, while caring for themselves to manage potential vicarious traumatisation. Supervisors and/or consultants of these therapists must support them in this work.
... As a deep empathic connection is established, caregivers working with individuals who have experienced trauma are vicariously exposed to their patients' traumatic experiences themselves [2]. This phenomenon, termed Vicarious Trauma (VT), is defined as a transformative process experienced by professionals who assist trauma survivors, initially studied and defined by Pearlman and Saakvitne (1995) [3]. It entails shifts in the therapist's self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and worldview, resulting from exposure to their clients' trauma. ...
... As a deep empathic connection is established, caregivers working with individuals who have experienced trauma are vicariously exposed to their patients' traumatic experiences themselves [2]. This phenomenon, termed Vicarious Trauma (VT), is defined as a transformative process experienced by professionals who assist trauma survivors, initially studied and defined by Pearlman and Saakvitne (1995) [3]. It entails shifts in the therapist's self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and worldview, resulting from exposure to their clients' trauma. ...
... It entails shifts in the therapist's self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and worldview, resulting from exposure to their clients' trauma. While these changes are considered normal, predictable, and inevitable, failing to address this process can have significant negative effects on the therapist, both personally and professionally [3]. ...
Addiction workers play a crucial role in addressing the complex interplay between trauma and addiction, often navigating empathic connections with clients who have trauma histories. This study delves into the phenomena of vicarious trauma (VT) and vicarious post-traumatic growth (VPG) among addiction workers, exploring (counter)transference dynamics and the trauma-addiction nexus. Thematic analysis was conducted on narratives provided by six experienced addiction workers (mean age = 33 years, SD ≈ 5.86). The analysis identified key themes including boundary dilemmas, therapeutic victories, defensive responses, and potential risk factors. The study highlights the detrimental effects of trauma on addiction workers while also revealing coping mechanisms and avenues for personal growth. Understanding the impact of trauma on addiction workers is vital for developing effective support strategies. By acknowledging both the risks of vicarious trauma and opportunities for vicarious post-traumatic growth, organizations can better support addiction workers and improve client care.
... Exposure to trauma as part of their job can cause traumatic stress relatively quickly (Figley, 1995). Additionally, mental health workers can accumulate traumatic stress over time (Pearlman andSaakvitne, 1995, Branson 2019). The manifestation of traumatic stress can be different, secondary traumatic stress is similar to the symptomatology of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the way that mental health workers experience intrusions and re-experiencing of the event that they have not directly lived. ...
... Although used interchangeably with secondary traumatic stress, a conceptually related but different traumatic effect in mental health workers can build up over time is vicarious trauma (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). Professionals may experience vicarious traumatization through empathetic involvement with trauma survivors (Branson 2019, Pearlman andSaakvitne 1995). ...
... Although used interchangeably with secondary traumatic stress, a conceptually related but different traumatic effect in mental health workers can build up over time is vicarious trauma (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995). Professionals may experience vicarious traumatization through empathetic involvement with trauma survivors (Branson 2019, Pearlman andSaakvitne 1995). Unlike secondary traumatic stress, which shares similarities with PTSD symptoms and has a sudden onset, vicarious trauma impacts the belief system of mental health workers. ...
Mental health professionals working with traumatic stress may experience post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, similar to their patients. For these professionals, secondary traumatic stress can be an important concept. It involves emotions, thoughts, and actions that emerge when a mental health worker becomes aware of a catastrophic event experienced by someone familiar, valued, and connected. In the literature, terms such as vicarious trauma, occupational burnout, and compassion fatigue are associated with secondary traumatic stress. Growing research presents that secondary traumatic stress is associated with personal trauma history, temperament, type of coping with stress, and levels of social support. The aim of this paper is to review and present the current situation of secondary traumatic stress and related concepts in mental health workers such as psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatry nurses, social workers, and so forth. In Türkiye, where several traumatic experiences (such as earthquake) are currently common, studying secondary traumatic stress in mental health workers is also significant. Healthy coping strategies, a resilient personality, and the display of signs of post-traumatic growth can contribute to the psychological well-being of mental health professionals. In this investigation the concept of secondary traumatic stress in mental health professionals, associated factors with this concept, coping mechanisms of secondary traumatic stress are explained in the light of the literature. Based on the emerging research, some recommendations are stated.
... Clinicians themselves are also found to experience less distress and greater reward [3][4][5] research has also identified potential costs to clinicians working with distressed clients. These include: burnout [6]; secondary traumatic stress (STS) [7,8] compassion fatigue (CF) [7] and vicarious trauma (VT) [9]. Distinct definitions exist for each of the terms describing this problem (see Table 1). ...
... Arts therapy. Expressive arts therapies can alleviate compassion fatigue [9] and their inclusion in MHWs' supervision can increase self-awareness and reduce stress e.g. [99,100]. ...
Consistently engaging with client distress can negatively impact mental health workers (MHWs). This has been described by the concept of empathy-based stress (EBS) (which encompasses burnout; secondary traumatic stress; compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma). Previous reviews of interventions to reduce EBS have not addressed MHWs as a distinct group, despite evidence suggesting they are particularly vulnerable to it. In the context of rising demand for mental health services, it is especially important to understand how to mitigate the impact of EBS on MHWS. This scoping review therefore aimed to identify and describe available interventions to reduce or prevent EBS in MHWs. A systematic scoping review of the literature between 1970 and 2022 was undertaken using five electronic databases. A total of 51 studies were included, which varied significantly with regards to: interventions used; study methodology and theoretical underpinnings. Studies were grouped according to the level at which they aimed to intervene, namely: individual; team or organisational. The review concluded that most studies intervened at the level of the individual, despite the proposed causes of EBS being predominantly organisational. Furthermore, theoretical links to the origins of EBS were largely unclear. This suggests a lack of empirical evidence from which organisations employing MHWs can draw, to meaningfully prevent or reduce EBS in their staff. A dedicated research agenda is outlined to address this, and, other pertinent issues in the field and signifies a call for more theoretically grounded research.
... Munroe зазначав, що це професійний ризик, плата за проведення роботи, яка виникає, коли психолог постає перед токсичністю травми. Психологи мають реагувати на вікарну травму шляхом її визнання та легітимізації, замість того, щоб стигматизувати та ігнорувати її появу [18]. ...
... Емпатія без ідентифікації з клієнтом призводить до співчуття по відношенню до нього. Moosman зробив висновок, що психологи, які реагували «занадто емоційно» через проєктивну ідентифікацію з клієнтом, мали більш високу вірогідність набути ознак вікарної травми на відміну від тих, хто лише емпатійно залучався [18]. ...
У статті висвітлено та узагальнено внесок наукових психологічних шкіл у дослідження та розвиток концепції вікарної травми з подальшою систематизацією теоретико-методологічних підходів до вивчення цього психологічного феномену, а також запропоновано гіпотетичну схему механізму виникнення вікарної травми у стосунках «психолог – клієнт» в межах інтегративного теоретико-методологічного підходу для психологів, які працюють в умовах військових конфліктів. Схема механізму виникнення вікарної травми показала процес, як психічна травма клієнта імплементується у внутрішній світ психолога та стає вікарною травмою. Під час цього процесу важливе значення мають окремі психічні процеси, такі як емпатійне залучення психолога в професійному альянсі, травматичне контрперенесення, проєктивна ідентифікація через «вікна емпатії», що створює умови для емоційного зараження та «індукції травми» у внутрішньому світі психолога. Гіпотеза про те, що наявні теоретико-методологічні підходи щодо визначення механізму вікарної травми, а саме теорія вторинного травматичного стресу, конструктивістська теорія самодопомоги та теорія травматичного контрперенесення з різних сторін описують один психічний феномен виникнення та розвитку вікарної травми через емпатійну залученість психолога під час професійної діяльності в межах альянсу «клієнт – психолог», знайшла своє підтвердження на теоретичному рівні, але вимагає подальших експериментальних досліджень. В той час, як теоретико-методологічний підхід вторинного травматичного стресу, який дає цілісне уявлення про симптоми вікарної травми, підхід конструктивістської теорії самодопомоги визначає рівень порушень когнітивних схем у сферах безпеки, довіри, поваги, контролю та близькості, сприяючи комплексній діагностиці вікарної травми як психологічного феномену. В подальшому поточні теоретичні надбання використовуватимуться з метою розробки заходів, які б допомогли діагностувати вікарну травму у психологів якомога раніше, так і подолати її деструктивний вплив на фахівців.
... Considering this definition, the results can be explained through McWilliams's (2011McWilliams's ( , 2021 theories, which discuss how such feelings can be particularly intense when clients evoke characteristics reminiscent of the therapist's own children or unresolved parenting issues. Pearlman and Saakvitne (1995) further elaborate on the challenges therapists face when clients' trauma and dependency trigger their protective instincts. Racker (1968) provides a foundational understanding of these dynamics, highlighting the importance of therapists recognizing and managing their emotional responses to maintain professional boundaries. ...
... Therapists often experience helpless and inadequate countertransference when working with clients whose issues seem overwhelming or resistant to intervention. This reaction is particularly common with clients who present with severe trauma, chronic mental health conditions, or persistent self-destructive behaviors (Pearlman and Saakvitne, 1995). Such feelings of inadequacy and helplessness may arise from the therapist's own unresolved issues or from a lack of effective therapeutic tools and strategies to address the client's complex needs (Gelso and Hayes, 2007). ...
Introduction
Psychotherapeutic failures involve situational, relational, and personal factors. Dropout refers to a patient’s unilateral termination of treatment without the therapist’s knowledge or approval. Premature termination occurs when therapy is discontinued before achieving a sufficient reduction in initial problems.
Objective
This study explores the role of therapist’s emotional response (countertransference), gender, psychotherapeutic orientation, and patient diagnosis in the context of psychotherapeutic failures.
Method
A mixed-method approach was used. Fifty-nine Italian psychotherapists, practicing mostly privately with at least 5 years of experience, were recruited through Italian professional internet websites. The Therapist Response Questionnaire and the Impasse Interview were administered to each psychotherapist. Each therapist was asked to reflect on their last dropout patient. Quantitative (MANOVA) and qualitative analyses (textual content analysis) were conducted with SPSS and T-LAB, respectively.
Results
The quantitative analyses revealed that the most frequent countertransference response was Helpless/Inadequate, with female therapists experiencing this more frequently than male therapists. The qualitative analyses identified two main factors explaining most of the variance in countertransference responses: Parental/Protective versus Hostile/Angry, and Positive/Satisfying versus Helpless/Inadequate, with Helpless/Inadequate central. Additionally, the qualitative analysis of treatment interruption methods revealed two factors explaining over 50% of the variance. Lack of communication was linked to negative themes, while mediated and direct communication were associated with positive terms. Direct communication was characterized as useful, while mediated communication was linked to dropout and attachment figures.
Conclusion
Under pressure, psychotherapists’ anxiety levels increase, often managed ambivalently or avoidantly. These results suggest that awareness of psychotherapist emotional responses is important to limit psychotherapeutic failures. These findings offer valuable insights for clinical practice.
... While those in practice were becoming more aware of the critical role of trauma in their patients' lives, the concept of trauma had been largely ignored in the education and training of clinical professionals (Courtois & Gold, 2009). This left many students within some healthcare professions (i.e., medicine, nursing, social work, psychology, public health, and related fields of study) underprepared for issues they would likely confront in their coursework and clinical training-including child maltreatment, domestic violence, physical and sexual assault, traumatic refugee experiences, life-threatening illness, military service-related traumas, and work-, school-, and community-related violence -and without a framework to help them understand their own reactions to these difficult situations (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). This lack of preparatory instruction and training, coupled with the limited life skills and life experience of some students, can make them vulnerable to feeling overwhelmed or incompetent, or to having their assumptions about childhood, family, and the world challenged (Cunningham, 2004;Neumann & Gamble, 1995), leaving them vulnerable to distress or STS (Butler et al., , 2018. ...
... The second aim is to promote broad positive outcomes; specifically, to maintain or enhance wellbeing and overall functioning within a balanced life. In general, the focus of the first aim originates in the academic self-care literature, derived primarily from workplace hazards such as stress, burnout, VT, and STS described by clinicians (e.g., Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995;Stamm, 1995) and would, in many cases, be directly applicable to the academic setting. The second aim's emphasis on sustaining and enhancing wellbeing and happiness may, at a superficial level, be interpreted as supporting the recent mainstream discussion of self-care that has moved from work stress-related origins to nonacademic discussions of general ways of coping, enhancing comfort and pleasure, and making oneself "happier" (Harris, 2017;Trombettea, 2018). ...
... For example, military lawyers working on sexual assault cases are exposed to trauma through interviews with victims, interviews with witnesses, video and photo evidence of violence, transcripts describing abuse, and repeated testimony of victimization (Awusah, 2022;Leonard et al., 2020). Exposure to trauma through one's work is commonly understood as vicarious traumatization or secondary trauma and can alter one's cognitive functioning (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). This includes their sense of self, and how they view the world such as their perception of trust, control, and safety (Maguire & Byrne, 2017;McCann & Pearlman, 1990;Newell & MacNeil, 2010). ...
... Vicarious or secondary trauma (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995) recognizes that exposure to traumatic, graphic, violent, or difficult experiences, images, and evidence can have emotional and mental health effects (Baird & Kracen, 2006;Katz & Haldar, 2016;Leonard et al., 2020). Military lawyers must conduct interviews with victims and witnesses relating to sexual assault as well as review images, recordings, text messages, social media posts, and videos, that include threatening, violent, harmful, and cruel actions (Awusah, 2022;Leonard et al., 2020) Lawyers in this study mentioned the difficulty in reviewing child sexual abuse materials, listening to victims explain their experience multiple times, viewing photographs of injuries that occurred during an assault, listening to threatening voicemails, and watching videos of violence. ...
Rampant sexual assault within the United States military contributes to an environment where military lawyers are exposed to vicarious trauma while handling sexual violence cases. Through in-depth interviews, we argue that military lawyers, trained to suppress emotions during military training, often negate their own trauma. Further, prosecutors are encouraged to take victim-centric approaches, that require emotional labor and minimizing their own emotional expressions. Therefore, they professionalize, minimize, and abstract the impact of vicarious trauma on their lives. Findings underscore how societal and professional expectations constrain the emotional expressions of military lawyers, highlighting the need to address mental well-being in the military.
... Burnout results from working with people over an extended period of time and affects professionals regardless of the clientele with whom they work (Maslach, 1982). Vicarious trauma is the result of an accumulation of incidents across many therapeutic treatments with clients who have experienced sexual abuse and assault (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995a;1995b). Vicarious trauma also results in permanent negative cognitive shifts in the therapist's world-view (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995a;1995b). ...
... Vicarious trauma is the result of an accumulation of incidents across many therapeutic treatments with clients who have experienced sexual abuse and assault (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995a;1995b). Vicarious trauma also results in permanent negative cognitive shifts in the therapist's world-view (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995a;1995b). ...
Compassion fatigue, also known as secondary traumatic stress, can result from a social worker working with traumatized clients in all areas of social work. If affected by compassion fatigue, the social worker will begin to experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder-like symptoms, which can have a deleterious effect on his/her personal and professional life. If the symptoms of compassion fatigue are left untreated, it could lead to ethical concerns with the client or leaving the social work profession. It is extremely important for the social worker to seek individual help to treat the symptoms and effects of compassion fatigue; however, it is also important to seek out the assistance of therapeutic support groups. This paper will discuss various strategies that can be employed in therapeutic support groups for social workers to help them ameliorate the effects of compassion fatigue.
... Bir olay ya da durumun birey tarafından algılanış şekli, psikolojik travmanın özünde bireysel bir deneyim olduğunu göstermektedir. Bu bağlamda, bireyin duygusal deneyimlerini bütünleştirme kapasitesi zorlanabilir ya da birey, öznel olarak, yaşamına, fiziksel bütünlüğüne veya zihinsel sağlığına yönelik bir tehdit algısı yaşayabilir (12). Dolayısıyla, travma kavramı, tanımı itibarıyla oldukça geniş bir perspektiften ele alınması gereken bir olgudur. ...
TRAVMADAN KURTULAN GÖÇMENLERLE ÇALIŞAN PROFESYONELLERDE İKINCIL TRAVMATIK STRES TEPKILERI HAKKINDA DERLEME ÇALIŞMA
... The mental or psychological wounds in this story, however, retain their physical conditions in the wounds Zayn and Jasim inflict on their victims, such as the university professor. Luckhurst's premise of the transmissibility of traumatic experiences and claiming second victimhood, or what Laurie Pearlman and Karen Saakvitne (1995) term as vicarious traumatization, resonates with Laub's idea of "bonding" which the testimonial process articulates between the traumatic person and the listener (1992: 70). As Jasim remembers nothing about his family, he is not entitled to provide a testimony. ...
This paper investigates the disintegration of Iraq following the 2003 American invasion. It examines the impact of its aftermath in destroying sites of Iraqi knowledge and memory and shaping the traumatic experiences of Iraqi people as presented in Sinan Antoon’s story, “Jasim’s File” (2018). Accordingly, the story illustrates the impact of the American invasion in the dissemination of a fabricated or alternative reality. It demonstrates how different traumatic agents have asserted dominance and conveys the role of the American occupation of Iraq in turning personal traumas into collective ones. Thus, the paper highlights the intersection between trauma theory and postcolonial literary studies. Some of the premises of leading figures in trauma studies – Cathy Caruth, Dominick LaCapra, Marianne Hirsch, Dori Laub, and Roger Luckhurst – were inspected, to argue that Iraqi post-invasion fiction enriches the study of postcolonial trauma theory, especially when applied in an under-researched context such as Iraq. While exploring the traumatic experiences of two characters, Jasim and Zayn, the story casts light on the influence of wars, genocide, displacement, and invasion on the Iraqi people’s psyche. Further, it presents a context in which celebrating the therapeutic value of testimony increases rather than reduces the impact of trauma.
... Psikologlar, deprem sonrası müdahale sürecinde yoğun stres altında çalışmakta ve travmatik olaylara doğrudan veya dolaylı olarak maruz kalmaktadır. Bu durum, ikincil travmatik stres (secondary traumatic stress) veya dolaylı travma (vicarious trauma) olarak adlandırılan bir dizi psikolojik semptomu tetikleyebilmektedir (7). İkincil travmatik stres, travma mağdurlarıyla çalışmanın bir sonucu olarak ortaya çıkan ve TSSB'ye benzer semptomları içeren bir kavramdır (8). ...
... In essence, both therapists and clients were survivors of the same event (Figley 2012). The empathic engagement with clients' traumatic material and its transforming effect on the inner experience and worldview of both parties (Pearlman and Saakvitne 1995) was only one side of the equation. At the same time, clinicians had to find a new language and conceptual framework to contain the experience of living and working under conditions of terrorism, a reality they shared with clients, as described previously in respect to large-scale terror attacks such as 9/11 (Miller 2003). ...
Objective
This study explores the experience of Israeli therapists who both worked with clients in emergency interventions during the third week following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and were themselves exposed, to one extent or another, to the terrifying events.
Method
Open‐ended questionnaires were completed by 201 therapists during the third week following October 7. Using thematic analysis, therapists' reports of the themes their clients raised in therapeutic sessions were compared with their reports of the hardships they themselves experienced as individuals and professionals during the same period. Drawing on the concept of shared traumatic reality, the study considers how close the themes are, and how challenging it is to cope concurrently with a traumatic reality that is experienced both directly and indirectly.
Results
Seven main categories emerged from the responses to questions about both their clients and themselves: (1) uncertainty and worries about the near and more distant future; (2) overwhelming emotions; (3) physical sensations; (4) shattered meaning and loss of trust; (5) lack of routine; (6) self‐preservation; and (7) shared trauma.
Conclusions
The findings shed light on early reactions to a shared traumatic reality in the period closely following the trauma itself, indicating that professionals find it hard to differentiate between the personal, professional, and national levels when exposed to a large‐scale traumatic event they share with their clients.
... Vicarious trauma is the result of being exposed to and empathically listening to stories of trauma, suffering, and violence (Pearlman and Saakvitne, 1995). A study conducted by Nen et al. (2011) with professionals experiencing vicarious trauma found numerous symptoms including flashbacks, nightmares, panic attacks, sleep difficulties, and being hyper-vigilant. ...
Researchers working in the field of violence against women and children are often tasked with listening to highly distressing personal accounts of violence and subsequent trauma. Without proper attention and mitigation strategies, this exposure can lead to vicarious trauma and related symptoms with significant impact on researchers’ well-being. As women are often leading and carrying out violence research, they also experience a disproportionate burden of risk of vicarious trauma symptoms. This case study highlights seven collective care strategies for research implemented by Healing and Resilience after Trauma (HaRT), a feminist organization dedicated to holistic healing among survivors of human trafficking and gender-based violence, whose team is entirely composed of women. Further, it explores how creating and integrating collective care into research protocols can help prevent vicarious trauma and enhance researchers’ emotional well-being as well as positively influence research quality. Qualitative data from researchers involved in the study on these strategies and how they affected their well-being are included. The piece concludes by discussing potential recommendations for other research teams and organizations seeking to mitigate the risk of vicarious trauma.
... There is a general acceptance in the literature that empathy and compassion play an important role in the development of secondary traumatization (Figley, 1995a;Rothschild, 2006;Sabo, 2011;Stamm, 2002) and that client recovery depends upon the professionals' empathic ability, skill, and resilience (Figley, 1995a(Figley, , 1995bPearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). However, the strong empathetic identification necessary to clients' recovery increases the risk that caregivers could be negatively affected (Thomas & Wilson, 2004). ...
With the prevalence of sexual violence in most countries and its increase in Sweden, it is important to understand the development of secondary traumatic reactions among professionals who work with sexually violated clients. The aim of this study was to describe the meaning of therapists’ personal experiences when treating survivors of sexual violence. We conducted a qualitative interview study of therapists in Sweden (N = 11) using thematic analysis and adding a phenomenological openess towards the phenomenon. The participants were all women, with different professional backgrounds and with further education in areas such as psychotherapy, sexology, trauma treatment, and forensic nursing. The essential meaning of their work could be described as a continuum where therapists were seeking balance between contradictory experiences, further described in four themes. They experienced their work as highly meaningful, and the use of self-care strategies helped to maintain protective boundaries. However, the incomprehensible violence they were indirectly exposed to, challenged their protective boundaries, thus causing negative reactions for the therapists. Increased understanding of the impact of work on therapists’ professional and private lives is crucial, and the need for therapists to have a model or framework of meaning and explanation for sexual violence that ties contradictory experiences together.
... Traditional therapy methods sometimes inadvertently risk retraumatizing individuals by encouraging them to repeatedly revisit painful memories and experiences (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). While discussing one's loss is a critical part of the healing process, there is a fine balance between beneficial exposure and harmful retraumatization. ...
This chapter examines the innovative integration of mindfulness and virtual reality (VR) to address grief and emotional loss. It begins by exploring the profound emotional challenges posed by grief and the urgent need for effective therapeutic methods. The chapter emphasizes the potential long-term mental health effects of unresolved grief, underscoring the necessity for novel interventions. Mindfulness, renowned for promoting emotional resilience and healing, is introduced as a crucial technique in this context. When combined with VR, mindfulness practices are transformed, offering immersive and introspective experiences for emotional processing. A detailed case study, “Effects of Mindfulness through Virtual Reality in Women with Recent Significant Emotional Losses,” illustrates the efficacy of VR-based mindfulness interventions. This research demonstrates VR’s unique ability to support individuals through the complexities of emotional loss by providing a flexible, personalized approach to mindfulness. The chapter highlights the adaptability and healing potential of VR, showcasing how it can address diverse emotional needs. By merging mindfulness with VR, a novel therapeutic avenue is presented, offering individuals a path toward emotional renewal and resilience. Ultimately, the chapter envisions a future where VR becomes a fundamental tool in emotional healing, providing solace and support within its immersive landscapes.
... The World Health Organization (WHO), for example, described burnout as symptoms stemming from workplace stressors that have not been properly managed (5). Research has also shown that professionals can exhibit similar symptoms to their clients who have experienced firsthand trauma (6,7). Importantly, the diminished wellbeing of professionals has been linked to poorer outcomes for the children and youth in care (8)(9)(10). ...
Introduction
Multiple risk and protective factors influence the wellbeing and retention of child protective and youth justice professionals. Less attention has been given to empirically understand how residential childcare workers (RCW) experience these factors. A sense of pride and of achievement may be related to competence and satisfaction, which have been identified as protective factors against staff turnover.
Methods
Responses to the Secure Base Interview Protocol question “What aspects of caring for (name of child in their care) have given you the greatest sense of pride or achievement?” were extracted from individual interview transcripts from Canadian RCW and analyzed using the Interpretive Description methodology. Themes were aggregated using the thematic analysis technique to create descriptions of RCW pride and achievement.
Results
The RCW identified many experiences of work-related pride and achievement while caring for children and youth. These positive experiences were described to occur contingent on the level of mutuality and trust in the helping relationship shared between the RCW and child or youth in their care.
Discussion
The reciprocal nature of the relationships described by RCW that gave rise to their felt sense of pride and accomplishment is a novel finding. Future work is indicated to better understand how protective factors related to RCW wellbeing may indeed be relationally constructed and dependent.
... 4 Vicarious trauma involves profound and sometimes permanent changes to professionals' cognitive schemas and core beliefs about themselves, others, and the world, that occur as a result of exposure to graphic and/or traumatic material relating to their clients' experiences. 5,6 Conceptually, burnout plus secondary trauma equals compassion fatigue. While burnout typically stems from institutional stressors, secondary trauma directly results from the traumatic content they encounter; and when unmitigated, secondary trauma can lead to vicarious trauma. ...
Forensic interviewing professionals, who regularly engage with children and youth reporting traumatic experiences, are particularly susceptible to secondary traumatic stress (STS) and compassion fatigue (CF). This conceptual article delves into the occupational hazards associated with forensic interviewing, emphasizing the inevitability of STS and CF due to frequent exposure to harrowing accounts of abuse. The article underscores the importance of recognizing these phenomena and differentiating them from burnout—a critical distinction that guides appropriate interventions. Utilizing the "Four Quadrants of Self-Preservation," a trauma- informed framework, the article offers practical strategies for forensic interviewers to mitigate the impacts of STS and CF. This approach promotes resilience through intentional self-care practices across four stages of secondary trauma exposure: before, during, immediately after, and ongoing post-exposure to traumatic material. The article advocates for organizational support in implementing these strategies, emphasizing the ethical imperative to safeguard the well-being of forensic interviewers. The findings suggest that addressing STS and CF not only enhances the personal resilience of professionals but also improves client outcomes, by reducing the likelihood of turnover and professional errors. This article contributes to the growing body of literature calling for trauma-informed practices in forensic settings, highlighting the need for continued research and organizational commitment to support these professionals.
... FMHPs could be distinctly at risk for vicarious trauma, given the graphic material they are regularly exposed to (Bradford & de Amorim Levin, 2020). Ignoring personal reactions can increase the likelihood of burnout, vicarious trauma, and other problematic outcomes that can impact an evaluator across multiple life domains (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). ...
Institutional abuse of children (IA-C) is a significant social problem that can have deleterious life-long consequences for survivors. This abuse occurs in settings including but not limited to sports organizations, religious institutions, schools, recreational settings, and foster care. A number of jurisdictions in Commonwealth countries and the United States have dropped or amended the statute of limitations for plaintiffs to bring forward claims related to institutional abuse. This means that mental health professionals are increasingly being retained as experts to assess adult plaintiffs seeking remedy for childhood abuse that occurred in the context of institutions decades prior. This article first reviews some of the distinct harms that can arise from IA-C. We suggest how a trauma-informed approach could be applied to these assessments with respect to an evaluator’s interpersonal stance and assessment procedures. We also discuss interpretive considerations related to psychological testing and diagnoses. Finally, we discuss challenges in rendering opinions related to causality and suggest ways that evaluators can systematically consider a plaintiff’s developmental trajectory in order to weigh in about the impact of this phenomenon.
... More than 25 years ago, Tony Morrison, a social worker in the United Kingdom (UK), argued that the pain, poverty and powerlessness so often experienced by service users potentially have direct impacts on those who seek to support, advocate for and work alongside them (Morrison, 1993). Terms such as 'secondary stress' and 'vicarious trauma' emerged in the 1990s (Figley, 1995;Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995) as ways to describe and understand the emotional impact of child welfare work on staff. This early theorising tended to focus on the nature of the work and the individual worker, rather than taking a more critical approach by examining wider systemic issues. ...
This report describes the research process, findings and implications of a scoping review undertaken by academics from the Social Work and Community Welfare Discipline, Faculty of Health, Southern Cross University (SCU). The review was undertaken on behalf of UnitingCare and the Community Services Industry Alliance (CSIA). The purpose of the report is to inform relevant non-government services and other stakeholders of contemporary research on the topic of staff wellbeing in child welfare services and programs. The research findings and report have implications for other fields of practice in the health and social care sectors. The report discusses strategies to inform organisations of approaches to support worker wellbeing across the individual, organisational and systemic levels, including advocacy. It concludes with proposed future directions and identifies current gaps that would benefit from further research.
... Moreover, traumatic narratives are usually very "film-like", which makes it even more likely that the interpreter will create active images of the patient's trauma (vivid images of traumatic scenes) or to picture oneself or loved ones in the position of the victim. These are risk factors for VT (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995;Rothschild & Rand, 2006). ...
Mental health interpreters are often exposed to traumatic material, such as accounts of torture, sexual violence and persecution, and are likely to experience symptoms of trauma themselves. The risk of vicarious traumatisation of interpreters can be mitigated by helping them defuse emotional repercussions encountered in their profession. Here, we suggest introducing into the training of interpreters a four-step psycho-educational course, based on theoretical and practical insights from psychology, psychiatry, linguistics and interpreting studies. More specifically, the training emphasises awareness of vicarious trauma, identification of its manifestations, detection of its main triggering factors, and elaboration of individual, interpersonal and structural coping strategies to be applied before, during and after consultations. Strategies presented here include hypno-imaginative techniques, and interprofessional pre-consultation sessions making the consultation more predictable. The feasibility of certain strategies due to interpersonal and structural constraints is also discussed. This article focuses on mental health interpreting; however, the findings and the proposed coping strategies may be valid for public service interpreting in other high-risk settings.
... accessed 26/03/23). Leaders, managers and supervisors should also be able to promote resources, coping strategies and approaches (e.g. for vicarious tramatisation see McCann & Pearlman, 1990;Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995;Saakvitne & Pearlman, 1996) and provide access for staff to confidential (and external) interventions for vicarious trauma where this may be needed (Kim et al., 2022). ...
Forensic mental health, custodial and community forensic services provide care and treatment to individuals with complex histories and needs including the presence of trauma. With increased attention being paid to delivering trauma informed care, this paper presents a framework for supporting safe and effective service delivery. It details ways in which trauma informed organizational consultation and trauma informed staff supervision and reflective practice should be embedded within criminal justice and forensic mental health service delivery. Together these support reflection, learning, decision making and intentional action, helping to meet an organization’s duty of care to both staff and clients. Trauma informed organizational consultation and trauma informed forensic staff supervision and reflective practice provide ways to anticipate and address possible iatrogenic impacts on staff (e.g. burnout, presenteeism and sickness) and on clients (e.g. dropping out of treatment). Together these can enable services to provide and sustain authentic approaches to delivering safe and effective care.
... This necessitates a dual approach to support -one that provides immediate crisis intervention and another that offers ongoing psychological support to address the cumulative effects of trauma exposure. Moreover, the concept of 'vicarious traumatization,' as discussed by Pearlman and Saakvitne (1995), is crucial in understanding the profound impact that working with trauma survivors can have on pediatric emergency room social workers. This refers to the changes in the helper's inner experience, worldview, selfperception, and sense of self and safety because of empathic engagement with a client's trauma. ...
Secondary traumatic stress (STS), the emotional duress that results when an individual hears about the firsthand trauma experiences of another, is a significant concern for many social workers, particularly those in high-stress and trauma-exposed environments such as emergency rooms or psychiatric hospitals. Newly graduated social workers are especially susceptible to STS due to their limited experience and exposure to the emotional distress of clients. Yet, limited studies have focused on newly graduated social workers and STS. This study is twofold: (1) it attempts to provide insight into the experiences of pediatric emergency room social workers (PERSW) with STS, and (2) to explicate the utility of the findings in practical strategies to assist newly graduated and current social workers entering high-stressful work environments. A thematic analysis and semi-structured interviews were used with twenty-three pediatric emergency room social workers with at least one year of experience. The analysis revealed three themes: (1) the trauma of the job, (2) the effects of STS, and (3) coping strategies for STS. The findings underscore the need for a specialized toolkit for new graduates in pediatric emergency social work, offering resources and strategies tailored to the unique challenges of this field.
... La exposición repetida a relatos de sufrimiento o castigo después de la muerte en contextos religiosos puede llevar a una identificación emocional intensa con esas experiencias. Esto es particularmente cierto para personas con una alta sensibilidad emocional o aquellos que ya han experimentado traumas personales (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 2013;Hunsaker-Hawkins, 2017). La repetida exposición a tales narrativas puede ser particularmente traumática para los niños y aquellos con una alta sensibilidad emocional. ...
This article comprehensively addresses the concept of religious trauma, exploring how religious practices and beliefs can generate stress and psychological harm in individuals. It details the definition of religious trauma, considering it as psychological damage that arises within religious contexts, often linked to rigid doctrines, abuse of power, or institutional disillusionment. Contributing factors are examined, such as spiritual abuse, social ostracism, intersectionality of identities, intergenerational transmission of harmful beliefs, and deconversion. Lastly, it underscores the importance of specialized training for mental health professionals, emphasizing the need for more research on religious trauma in diverse contexts, such as Puerto Rico.
... Figley (1995) first used the term "compassion fatigue" to describe emotional contagion from exposure to others' distress. Such contagion is now variously known as secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, or vicarious traumatization all underpinned by systemic trauma theory and constructivist self-development theory (Figley, 1995(Figley, , 1998McCann & Pearlman, 1990;Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). Over time, secondary trauma exposure can lead to a loss of empathy and growing apathy in those listening or witnessing the narratives of those they seek to assist. ...
Objective: Within Australia, there is incongruence between individual microlevel attitudes toward forcibly displaced people, and macrolevel attitudes within the media and politics. Seeking the lived experience of refugee advocates, the current study explores the perceived impact of macrolevel attitudes on the well-being of advocates and the wider community. Method: A purposive sample of 10 refugee advocates participated in semistructured interviews which were then transcribed verbatim. Scripts were analyzed individually and jointly as per the protocols of interpretative phenomenological analysis. Results: One superordinate group experiential theme emerged from the analysis, kyriarchal system of oppression, acknowledging the intersections of oppression within macro societal power structures. The theme conveys paternal, patriarchal, racial, and imperialistic oppression and overarches six subordinate themes: political and systemic cruelty, dominant group thinking, media as mediator, advocacy overwhelm and burnout, shattered schemas, and opportunity to thrive. Discussion/Conclusion: The findings of this study prompt debate regarding the critical issue of migration and refugees and how discord between personal views, media, and political commentary have the potential to influence mental distress at many levels of society. For these participants, vicarious exposure to trauma and discord between their own and macroattitudes toward the extreme distress of refugee and asylum seeker populations for whom they cared, precipitated susceptibility to burnout and secondary traumatic stress. The findings provide pathways for future research including psychological risks to volunteers and advocates, and inform future policy and practice for successful refugee integration.
... Because dissociation and CDDs are often misunderstood (Kumar et al., 2022;Nester et al., 2022), there is also a critical need to investigate therapists' perspectives regarding training in treating CDDs. Therapists face unique, emotionally intense, and often challenging dynamics in psychotherapy with dissociative clients, such as resistance, traumatic transference, and countertransference (ISSTD, 2011;Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995). Many therapists believe more training on dissociation and CDDs is needed and helpful (Kumar et al., 2022). ...
Purpose: Complex dissociative disorders (CDDs) are prevalent among psychotherapy clients, and research suggests carefully paced treatment for CDDs is helpful. The purpose of the present study is to qualitatively explore helpful and meaningful aspects of the TOP DD Network programme, a web-based adjunctive psychoeducational programme for the psychotherapeutic treatment of clients with CDDs.
Methods: TOP DD Network programme participants (88 clients and 113 therapists) identified helpful and meaningful aspects of their participation in response to two open textbox questions. Framework analysis was used to qualitatively analyze client and therapist responses.
Findings: Participants found the TOP DD Network programme helpful and meaningful in nuanced ways. Three themes were created: (1) Components of the Programme (subthemes: content, structure), (2) Change-Facilitating Processes (subthemes: heightened human connection, receiving external empathy and compassion, contributing to something bigger, improved therapeutic work and relationship), and (3) Outcomes (subthemes: insight, increased hope, self-compassion, increased safety and functioning). The most emphasized theme was components of the programme, which captured its content and structure.
Conclusion: Clients and therapists in the TOP DD Network programme described the programme’s components and processes as helpfully facilitating positive outcomes in the treatment of CDDs. Therapists may consider integrating the components and processes in the programme into their practice with clients with CDDs.
... The studies reported being conceptualized around numerous theories and frameworks, including the following: betrayal trauma theory (Freyd, 1994), Spaccarelli's (1994) transactional model, minority stress model (Meyer, 2003), microaggressions theory (Robinson & Rubin, 2016), Finkelhor (1984) preconditions model of child sexual abuse, traumagenic dynamics model (Finkelhor & Browne, 1985), attachment theory (Brennan et al., 1998;Mikulincer et al., 2003), mutual/personal model (Kirkpatrick, 1986), constructivist self-development theory (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995), attribution theory (Heider, 1958;Weiner, 2008), posttraumatic growth (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004), ecosystemic theory (Thoburn & Sexton, 2016), complex trauma, moral injury, psychophysiological trauma, cultantagonist position (Hassan, 2016;Lifton, 1961Lifton, / 1989Singer, 1995Singer, /2003, biblical-first century lens, and multicultural and trauma treatment competencies. Additionally, numerous qualitative theories were reported, including phenomenology, grounded theory, narrative inquiry theory, social constructivism, biographical life history, and consensual qualitative research, and approaches/ frameworks such as social constructivist, heuristic, feminist, identity, existentialist, ecosystemic, and meaning-making. ...
In the past few decades, researchers have delineated the importance of acknowledging and addressing harm, trauma, and abuse from religion/spirituality. With this increase in awareness around these issues, the dearth of research on psychotherapeutic intervention for these concerns has become more apparent. The present scoping review is a synthesis of the psychotherapy recommendations for addressing harm from adverse religious/spiritual experiences that have been published in the peer-reviewed and grey literature. Of the 8,048 studies reviewed, 44 studies met the following inclusion criteria: were an empirical peer-reviewed article, doctoral dissertation, or master’s thesis; discussed implications to inform the process of psychotherapy; therapy implications were directed toward addressing harm, trauma, or abuse from adverse religious/spiritual experiences; and were written in English. Results were synthesized according to research characteristics and methods, conceptualization, participant demographics, therapy implications as the purpose of studies, and therapy implications as discussion commentary. Studies were frequently qualitative, grey literature, White, Christian, and U.S.-based, with therapy implications often only as discussion commentary. Recommendations for research, practice, cultural diversity, and ethics are discussed.
... In una relazione autentica e partecipata, sarà inevitabile pertanto che il terapeuta venga contagiato emotivamente e avverta in sé stesso emozioni corrispondenti a quelle provate dal paziente (Liotti & Farina, 2011): ad esempio, se il paziente si percepisce come inaiutabile e senza via d'uscita, il terapeuta sperimenterà inevitabilmente un profondo senso d'impotenza. Poiché nessun terapeuta è immune dalle risposte di controtransfert, né dalla traumatizzazione vicaria o secondaria che può verificarsi nel trattamento con questi pazienti, è di fondamentale importanza poter usufruire di frequenti consulenze e supervisioni, a ogni livello di esperienza (Pearlman & Saakvitne, 1995;Saakvitne & Pearlman, 1996). ...
La capacità di raggiungere un certo grado di vicinanza e intimità nella relazione con gli altri costituisce un fattore protettivo per la salute mentale. Nonostante questo, molte persone sperimentano difficoltà nello stabilire relazioni caratterizzate da un adeguato livello di interdipendenza. La ricerca ha identificato come le esperienze relazionali precoci avverse e lo sviluppo di un attaccamento insicuro costituiscano dei fattori ostacolanti la costruzione di una dipendenza sana nelle relazioni interpersonali. Infatti, se da un lato questi individui possono rappresentare sé stessi solo in relazione a un altro che fornisce cure e accudimento, dall’altro possono mostrare risposte avversive alla vicinanza emotiva per timore di entrare in intimità con gli altri. Nel trauma complesso vi è una pervasiva sfiducia nei confronti degli altri mentre, su di sé, prevale la credenza di essere inamabili e privi di valore. Il contesto relazionale, che precedentemente è stato fonte di abuso o neglect, diventa lo stesso nel quale può avvenire la guarigione, attraverso la costruzione di una relazione terapeutica caratterizzata da confini chiari e definiti, indicativi di una dipendenza sana. Le rappresentazioni di sé e dell’altro non integrate portano il paziente traumatico a oscillare tra tentativi di vicinanza e di distacco nella relazione terapeutica quando entra in contatto con i propri bisogni di accudimento e di dipendenza, manifestandoli attraverso strategie che tendono a elicitare il rifiuto del terapeuta e pongono il paziente a rischio di ulteriori traumatizzazioni. L’intensa qualità degli stati emotivi nel trauma comporta un alto grado di coinvolgimento per il terapeuta, che potrà mostrare sentimenti ambivalenti tra una forte sintonizzazione emotiva e un istinto a respingere e allontanare il paziente. La frattura dell’alleanza è un processo continuo nella relazione col paziente traumatico, ed è proprio attraverso di esso che il paziente guarisce nella misura in cui apprende che l’interruzione è riparabile e che la disconnessione non coincide con la perdita del senso di sé.
Parole chiave: trauma complesso, relazione terapeutica, confini, vicinanza, intimità, dipendenza
... Vicarious trauma is the term used by McCann and Pearlman (1990) to describe the cognitive impact clinicians experience from the compassionate care provided to clients. Pearlman and Saakvitne (1995) then used the term VT to refer specifically to the negative cognitive changes and shifts in world beliefs that result from indirect exposure for clinicians working with trauma survivors. STS is used to describe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms such as arousal, intrusion, and avoidance which result specifically from interactions with trauma survivors and their stories. ...
Compassion fatigue (CF) has been a well-documented occupational hazard for clinicians over the past few decades. However, there are several limitations with the current conceptualizations describing the impact of indirect trauma. First, there is a lack of consistency in terms related to CF. Second, there is limited attention in the current models to clinicians’ relational triggers as a key factor impacting their emotional responses to clients. The current article proposes a new term, absorption vulnerability (AV), to capture the risk level and root causes of developing distress and impairment due to trauma work. This new AV model integrates secondary trauma exposure and relational triggers of personal trauma history, family of origin and attachment issues, and the degree of differentiation of self. Interventions to metabolize absorbed trauma and reduce future risk of AV are explored.
The psychoanalytic theory deals with various variable aspects such as dreams, flashbacks, nightmares, fear, lack of trust, and many reactions by affected victims, and thus will be presented in this study by analyzing the symptoms of the traumatized characters. Virginia Woolf and Rebecca West challenge the meaning of fact, the truth of experience, the conventional social functions, and stretch the boundaries of literature to demonstrate the massive impact of war on young people from a psychoanalytic viewpoint in order to share what they observed in that period. Therefore, this thesis tries to explain how the psychoanalytic approach began to be used in literary criticism by focusing on the consequences of war on young individuals and their reactions after the conflict ended, and then shows why Mrs. Dalloway and The Return of the Soldier are considered to be among the first war-traumatizing fiction by pointing to some cases as main characters, showing what they experienced during the Great War. The study is divided into three chapters. The first chapter focuses on variations and characteristics of psychoanalysis, traumatic flurry, war, reflective trauma, contiguous trauma, the nature of nightmares, and painful experiences. The second and third chapters conclude that Virginia Woolf and Rebecca West had personal meetings and reflected their fictional works as samples. Lastly, these techniques have been interpreted by two veterans: Septimus Smith and Chris Baldry, from war's massive shocking incidents.
Demographic trends in gender-based violence (GBV) for the United States and globally will be presented, as well as issues such as abuse, intimate partner violence and domestic violence, sexual harassment and assault, and the overall impact of the #MeToo movement on the larger society. The identification and psychological treatment of gender-based violence will be discussed, including tracing the history of how sexual abuse as a clinical topic evolved in the field and current trends in the treatment of both survivors and offenders. Gender differences for survivors of gender-based violence will be described, along with effective strategies for treating clients presenting with these issues.
This latest volume in the Oxford University Press popular “problem-based learning” approach to clinical medicine tackles four domains of professional competencies that are relevant to a wide spectrum of healthcare professions and all clinical providers. The 73 chapters tackle common professional, ethical, legal, and educational lessons related to healthcare and are authored by prominent leaders and experts with nursing, medical, legal, ethical, and educational backgrounds. Each chapter is based on a problem or case history followed by pertinent questions, a model discussion, and multiple-choice questions for learner assessment. The volume collates a wide variety of topics in the main nonclinical categories of professional competencies that will be of interest to a diverse array of healthcare providers, trainees, and students and presents them in an easily digestible, problem-based learning format. Each chapter could also serve as a template for teaching sessions and, collectively, could create curricula for professional, ethical, legal, or educational instruction.
This study is an autoethnographic research aimed at exploring the researcher's experience of secondary trauma while working with Syrian children affected by war. This qualitative research was rooted in the researcher's personal and professional life experiences, and it delves into the challenges faced during the researcher's work with these children in a social service setting in Turkiye. Data were gathered from the researcher's personal notes, reflecting the experiences of secondary trauma. Additionally, to gain deeper insights into the professional dimension of secondary trauma, the life stories of two Syrian children affected by war, with whom the researcher worked as a counselor, were included, and analyzed. In summary, the autoethnographic exploration of the researcher's experience of secondary trauma reshaped the understanding of the reality as both a researcher and a clinician, altering the meaning of the researcher's self-perception in these roles.
This work examines the impact of psychological flexibility, understood through the lens of acceptance
and commitment therapy (ACT), on secondary traumatization, compassion satisfaction, and posttraumatic growth among professionals supporting individuals experiencing mental health crises. The
study was conducted among professionals working in various areas of mental health, using quantitative
methods to assess variables. The analysis of the results showed that a high level of psychological
flexibility is associated with lower levels of secondary traumatization and higher indicators of compassion
satisfaction and post-traumatic growth. These findings suggest that interventions focused on
psychological flexibility within the acceptance and commitment therapy model may be a key element in
preventing negative outcomes of working with individuals in mental health crises and in promoting
positive aspects of such work, such as compassion satisfaction and post-traumatic growth.
As organizations increasingly focus on, and revise, their approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion, the role, and everyday efforts of incorporating neurodiversity into DEI initiatives has received increasing attention. Simultaneously, the ‘work’ that people engage as they meet, collaborate, and build workplaces for and with neurodivergent employees warrants attention. More specifically, if an employee or leader has espoused values around neurodiversity, what workplace behaviors would best reflect this espoused value? What workplace practices should neurotypicals engage in and/or reflect upon to demonstrate that they value neurodivergent workers and that they don’t want to reduce them to the ideals about ‘limitations’ associated with their neurodivergence? In this chapter, I draw on findings from secondary data (e.g., archival and observations) about change agents addressing stigma within the autism employment landscape. My goal is twofold: (a) to highlight practices that neurotypicals engage to demonstrate value for neurodivergent workers within an organizing framework (BRIDGE); and (b) to suggest directions for practice and future research based on this organizing framework. To do so, I first review research on stigma related to neurodivergence. Then, I present and describe the BRIDGE framework and its practices that are rooted in stigma theory and research.
The current study is a comparative exploration of intergenerational trauma within families and its effects on the various characters of the selected fiction namely, Shafak’s Honour (2012) and Lahiri’s The Namesake (2009). This qualitative inquiry is based on the close-text analysis of the selected passages. The theoretical framework employed in this paper borrows concepts from Familial Trauma theory. This research explores the following aspects: Firstly, it examines the intergenerational trauma within families. Secondly, it focuses on the ways the characters are left vulnerable and react to their corresponding trauma. Lastly, the research also explores the possible gender differences as a response to trauma. The research is significant in its understanding of the multi- faceted display of trauma within the generation of families and its role in shaping the life trajectories of the various characters, collectively as well as individually.
Symptoms severe enough to constitute a secondary traumatization (ST) can arise from providing eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment. However, little is known about specific risk factors such as a personal trauma history. EMDR therapists ( n = 115) filled out a questionnaire battery to test whether the personal trauma history predicts symptom levels over and beyond vicarious exposure and whether vicarious exposure mediates the relationship between primary trauma history and current ST severity. Current exposure predicts ST symptom severity, while lifetime exposure is negatively associated. The number of primary traumata and the total severity of primary traumata do not explain additional variance in ST symptom severity. The mediation model suggests that primary trauma exposure instead is associated with treating more traumatized clients. The current results suggest that ST is a relevant topic to address in EMDR training, but the personal trauma history does not seem to constitute a relevant risk factor per se. It might, however, be associated with preferences for clientele composition, which in turn might act as a risk factor.
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