Spirits, Devils and Trauma. Dissociation in Uganda

This thesis originates from an interest to understand more about pathological dissociative presentations in Uganda, as a way of addressing traumatic stress and other adverse events within a cultural and social-political context

Prolonged grief in children and adolescents: Assessment, correlates, and treatment

Many children like Bas and Eva experience stressful events as they grow up. They are faced with painful circumstances like parental divorce or the death of a loved one. Most children can overcome those experiences, but some develop such psychological problems that professional help is needed. The overall focus of this dissertation is the assessment and treatment of problematic grief in children like Bas and Eva. First, we give an overview of epidemiological aspects and a historical overview of research on problematic grief.

Effects of Psychotherapy on Trauma-Related Cognitions in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Meta-Analysis

In the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) incorporate trauma-related cognitions. This adaptation of the criteria has consequences for the treatment of PTSD. Until now, comprehensive information about the effect of psychotherapy on trauma-related cognitions has been lacking. Therefore, the goal of our meta-analysis was to determine which psychotherapy most effectively reduces trauma-related cognitions.

The Effect of the Postdisaster Context on the Assessment of Individual Mental Health Scores

Many scholars question the immense variation in rates of mental health outcomes across disaster studies. This study explains this variation by putting forward 2 methodological problems that are inherent to the effect of a disaster context on mental health screening scores. The Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 was administered in a flood-affected group (n = 318) and a nonaffected group (n = 304) in Uttar Pradesh, India. The affected group showed much higher mean scores on subscales of anxiety and depression.

Somatization in refugees: a review

Purpose: To present a review of the literature concerning medically unexplained physical symptoms in refugees.
Methods: We outline a variety of definitions and explanations of somatization, as well as the role of culture in the concept of disease. In addition, we present a review of the epidemiological literature about somatization in refugees.

Mental health and gender-based violence Helping survivors of sexual violence in conflict – a training manual

In recent years, several manuals and guidelines have been developed in the field of trauma. Some of these have addressed gender-based violence (GBV), its consequences, and ways to prevent it and protect against it. This manual focuses on the mental health of survivors of trauma, especially trauma associated with GBV. The aim is to provide a very practical supplement to the existing literature.

TERRA toolkit

TERRA is a two year Europe wide network based prevention and learning project, funded by the European Commission, DG Home Affairs. It is carried out by Impact Knowledge and Advice Centre, Amsterdam, and AV11M, Madrid. TERRA takes a preventative approach towards radicalisation leading to terrorism.

Accelerated Resolution Therapy for treatment of pain secondary to symptoms of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder

Background: As many as 70% of veterans with chronic pain treated within the US Veterans Administration (VA) system may have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and conversely, up to 80% of those with PTSD may have pain. We describe pain experienced by US service members and veterans with symptoms of PTSD, and report on the effect of Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), a new, brief exposure-based therapy, on acute pain reduction secondary to treatment of symptoms of PTSD.

Distinguishing PTSD, Complex PTSD, and Borderline Personality Disorder: A latent class analysis

Background: There has been debate regarding whether Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Complex PTSD) is distinct from Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) when the latter is comorbid with PTSD.
Objective: To determine whether the patterns of symptoms endorsed by women seeking treatment for childhood abuse form classes that are consistent with diagnostic criteria for PTSD, Complex PTSD, and BPD.
Method: A latent class analysis (LCA) was conducted on an archival dataset of 280 women with histories of childhood abuse assessed for enrollment in a clinical trial for PTSD.

Cultural competence in the treatment of political refugees based on system approaches

This article analyses the integrative trauma focused systemic treatment, developed for refugee families with regard to current views on cultural competence. The contextualized and multifaceted conceptual framework and flexible settings that facilitate treatment of culturally diverse populations are described and illustrated with a case example. The potential pitfalls of cultural competence as a strategy in addressing cultural diversity are discussed.

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