Trauma exposure and refugee status as predictors of mental health outcomes in treatment-seeking refugees

Aims and method This study aimed to identify predictors of symptom severity for
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression in asylum seekers and refugees
referred to a specialised mental health centre. Trauma exposure (number and domain
of event), refugee status and severity of PTSD and depression were assessed in 688
refugees.
Results Symptom severity of PTSD and depression was significantly associated with
lack of refugee status and accumulation of traumatic events. Four domains of

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The relationship between trauma, shame, and guilt: findings from a community-based study of refugee minors in Germany

Background: The relationships between traumatic stress and self-conscious emotions, such as shame and guilt, remain to be fully explored, especially in refugees, who frequently are exposed to a multitude of stressors.
Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate shame and guilt in refugee minors and to assess to what extent a greater cumulative exposure to traumatic stressors would result not only in more severe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms but also in higher levels of shame and guilt.

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Untested assumptions: psychological research and credibility assessment in legal decision-making

Background: Trauma survivors often have to negotiate legal systems such as refugee status determination or the criminal justice system. Methods & results: We outline and discuss the contribution which research on trauma and related psychological processes can make to two particular areas of law where complex and difficult legal decisions must be made: in claims for refugee and humanitarian protection, and in reporting and prosecuting sexual assault in the criminal justice system.

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Narrative and Silence: How Former Refugees Talk about Loss and Past Trauma

Using narrative methodology this paper analyses the life stories of 25 former refugees from two African countries, resettled in Australia. Study findings demonstrated a salient divergence between the stories of the two communities; within which there were also individual differences in structure and content of participants’ narratives. Five narrative types were identified along a continuum from detailed disclosure to near-complete silence about traumatic events and experiences.

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Seven-Year Follow-Up Study of Symptoms in Asylum Seekers and Refugees With PTSD Treated With Trauma-Focused Groups

Objective: To examine sustainability of symptom outcomes of a 1-year phase-based traumafocused, multimodal, and multicomponent group therapy in a day treatment program for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) over an average period of 7 years.

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The validation of a social functioning questionnaire in an African postconflict context

Abstract

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Special issue: New frontiers

Content:
From the editor: new frontiers
New frontiers in mental health and psychosocial wellbeing in low resource and conflict affected settings
Rethinking mental health care: bridging the credibility gap
Resource caravans and resource caravan passageways: a new paradigm for trauma responding
War experiences, daily stressors and mental health five years on: elaborations and future directions
Addressing collective trauma: conceptualisations and interventions
Using mixed methods to build knowledge of refugee mental health

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Challenges in treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder

Background: Research shows that trauma-focused therapy and multimodal interventions are the two most
often used strategies in treatment of refugees suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). While
preliminary evidence suggests that trauma-focused approaches may have some efficacy, this could not be
established for multimodal interventions. However, it may be that multimodal interventions have been studied
in more treatment-resistant refugees with very high levels of psychopathology, disability, and chronicity. In the

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EMDR With Traumatized Refugees: From Experience-Based to Evidence-Based Practice

Many refugees resettled in Western countries suffer from an accumulation of traumatic and current stressors that contribute to mental health problems and may complicate trauma-focused treatment. Consequently, the acceptability, safety, and efficacy of trauma-focused treatment with refugees have been a matter of clinical and scientific interest. In recent years, the evidence has accumulated for narrative exposure therapy and culturally adapted cognitive behavioral therapy.

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Developmental perspective on trauma

This book presents a new model on trauma. A new factor in this book is the impact of the child developmental stage itself on the perception of traumatic events. This concerns the way trauma influences the performance of the developmental tasks, a formative developmental perspective. A frame of...

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