The aim of the present research was to examine the experience of extended periods of immigration detention from the perspective of previously detained asylum seekers and to identify the consequences of these experiences for life after release. The study sample comprised seventeen adult refugees (sixteen male and one female, average age 42 years), who had been held in immigration detention funded by the Australian government for on average three years and two months.

There is now ample evidence from the preclinical and clinical fields that early life trauma has both dramatic and long-lasting effects on neurobiological systems and functions that are involved in different forms of psychopathology as well as on health in general. To date, a comprehensive review of the recent research on the effects of early and later life trauma is lacking. This book fills an obvious gap in academic and clinical literature by providing reviews which summarize and synthesize these findings.

This study examines the association of life stressors and the period when they occur, with the development of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) symptoms in Gulf War veterans. Of data collected from Gulf War Health Registry veterans, 113 met CFS criteria and 441were controls. After hierarchical multiple regression, several negative life stressors were associated with CFS group membership: being wounded, experiencing a traumatic war experience, frequent battle experiences, demotion, and unable to work within 2 years of returning from the Gulf.

In a comparative qualitative study of 13 organizations worldwide working with survivors of extreme trauma, the relationship between work-related stress and conflict and the structure of the organization is examined. Seventy-two caregivers, supervisors, and experts are interviewed and external organizational analyses and capacity assessments analyzed. The results show that organizations with high stress and conflict levels exhibit considerable structural deficiencies and an atmosphere shaped by a reenactment of the traumatic world of clients.