Stress, Trauma, and Posttraumatic Growth

What happens in the trauma's aftermath? How do its effects manifest differently on the individual, family, and community-wide levels? Stress, Trauma, and Posttraumatic Growth: Social Context, Environment, and Identities explores the way traumatic events are defined, classified, and understood throughout the life cycle, placing special emphasis on the complex intersections of diverse affiliations and characteristics such as age, class, culture, disability, race and ethnicity, gender identity and expression, immigration status, political ideology, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. The book gives its readers a solid basis for understanding traumatic events and treating their effects and also shows the varied ways that trauma is conceptualized across cultures. Both new and seasoned clinicians will come away from Stress, Trauma, and Posttraumatic Growth with a deep understanding of the principles that guide successful trauma treatment.

Roni Berger, PhD, LCSW, is professor of social work at Adelphi University School of Social Work, USA.

Introduction. I. Mapping the Arena 1. Concepts and Definitions 2. Classification of Stressful Events 3: Leading Theories II. Pathogenic and Salutogenic Outcomes of Exposure to Stress in Individuals, Families and Communities 4. Effects of Stress on Individuals 5. Effects of Stress on Couples and Families 6. Effects of Stress on Communities III. Understanding Stress and Trauma From Developmental and Cultural Perspectives 7. Developmental Perspectives: Stress, Trauma and PTG across the Life Cycle 8. Cultural Aspects IV. Addresing the Outcomes of Stress and Traumatic Exposure 9. Helping Individuals Affected by Highly Stressful Events 10. Interventions with Couples and Families 11. Community Interventions References