Extreme Stress and Communities: Impact and Intervention is the first volume to address traumatic stress from a community perspective. The authors, drawn from among the world's leaders in psychology, psychiatry and anthropology, examine how extreme stress, such as war, disasters and political upheaval, interact in their effects on individuals, families and communities. The book is rich in both theoretical insight and practical experience. It informs readers about how to adopt a community perspective and how to apply this perspective to policy, research and intervention.

In 1996, representatives from 27 different countries met in Jerusalem to share ideas about traumatic stress and its impact. For many, this represented the first dialogue that they had ever had with a mental health professional from another country. Many of the attendees had themselves been exposed to either personal trauma or traumatizing stories involving their patients, and represented countries that were embroiled in conflicts with each other. Listening to one another became possible because of the humbling humanity of each participant, and the accuracy and objectivity of the data presented. Understanding human traumatization had thus become a common denomi nator, binding together all attendees. This book tries to capture the spirit of the Jerusalem World Conference on Traumatic Stress, bringing forward the diversities and commonalties of its constructive discourse. In trying to structure the various themes that arose, it was all too obvious that paradigms of different ways of conceiving of traumatic stress should be addressed first. In fact, the very idea that psychological trauma can result in mental health symptoms that should be treated has not yet gained universal acceptability. Even within medicine and mental health, competing approaches about the impact of trauma and the origins of symptoms abound. Part I discusses how the current paradigm of traumatic stress disorder developed within the historical, social, and process contexts. It also grapples with some of the difficulties that are presented by this paradigm from anthropologic, ethical, and scientific perspectives.

Psychological service in the wake of cataclysmic life events has emerged as a prominent and visible component of social response. This has generated a bandwagon of potential service providers, service approaches, and service venues. Where once help was scarce, it has become plentiful enough to engender its own set of conflicts and contradictions along with its intended solace and aid. Response to Disaster reconciles the technical, theoretical, and applied interests represented in these various populations and provides a contemporary treatment that can help define the directions of their increasing interaction.

This original work focuses on how stress evolves and is resolved in the interplay between persons and their social connectedness within family, tribe, and culture. Stress, Culture, and Community maintains that the primary motivation of human beings is to build, protect, and foster their resource reservoirs in order to protect the self and its social attachments. Stevan E. Hobfoll searches for the causes of psychological distress and potential methods of successful stress resistance by probing the ties that bind people in families, communities, and cultures. By focusing on the `process" rather than the `outcomes' of stress, he reshapes the stress dialogue.

- Presented into two clear and understandable sections: theoretical/empirical and intervention programs - Both authors have immense experience dealing with disaster and mass trauma, both in Israel and in the United States - Serves as both a reference tool and as a toolkit that can be used by all important players involved, which include mental health personnel, teachers, and parents

"As foreign assistance flows into post-conflict regions to rebuild economies, roads, and schools, it is important that development professionals retain a focus on the purely human element of rebuilding lives and societies. This book provides perspective on just how to begin that process so that the trauma people suffered is not passed on to future generations long after the violence has stopped." - Amy T. Wilson, Ph.D., Gallaudet University, Washington, DC "This ground-breaking text provides the reader with an excellent and comprehensive overview of the existing field of trauma rehabilitation. It also masterfully navigates the intricate relationships among theory, research, and practice leaving the reader with immense appreciation for its subject matter." - Hanoch Livneh, Hanoch Livneh, Ph.D., LPC, CRC, Portland State University Fear, terror, helplessness, rage: for soldier and civilian alike, the psychological costs of war are staggering. And for those traumatized by chronic armed conflict, healing, recovery, and closure can seem like impossible goals. Demonstrating wide-ranging knowledge of the vulnerabilities and resilience of war survivors, the collaborators on Trauma Rehabilitation after War and Conflict analyze successful rehabilitative processes and intervention programs in conflict-affected areas of the world. Its dual focus on individual and community healing builds on the concept of the protective "trauma membrane," a component crucial to coping and healing, to humanitarian efforts (though one which is often passed over in favor of rebuilding infrastructure), and to promoting and sustaining peace. The book’s multiple perspectives—including public health, community-based systems, and trauma-focused approaches—reflect the complex psychological, social, and emotional stresses faced by survivors, to provide authoritative information on salient topics such as: Psychological rehabilitation of U.S. veterans, non-Western ex-combatants, and civilians Forgiveness and social reconciliation after armed conflict Psychosocial adjustment in the post-war setting Helping individuals heal from war-related rape The psychological impact on prisoners of war Rehabilitating the child soldier Rehabilitation after War and Conflict lucidly sets out the terms for the next stage of humanitarian work, making it essential reading for researchers and professionals in psychology, social work, rehabilitation, counseling, and public health.

With traumatic stress an increasing global challenge, the U.N., the NGO community and governments must take into account the psychological aftermath of large-scale catastrophes and individual or group violence. This volume addresses this global perspective, and provides a conceptual framework for interventions in the wake of abuse, torture, war, and disaster on individual, local, regional, and international levels. To be useful to both practitioners and policymakers, the book identifies model programs that can be implemented at every level.

Grounded in the best science available, this essential volume presents practical guidelines for effective clinical intervention in the immediate, intermediate, and long-term aftermath of large-scale traumatic events. Vital lessons learned from a variety of mass traumas and natural disasters are incorporated into the book's thorough review of strategies for helping specific victim and survivor populations. The editors and authors include over 40 leading experts in disaster mental health. Of crucial importance, they clearly summarize the empirical evidence supporting each intervention and provide other guidance based on experience and consensus recommendations.

This book aims to promote the psychosocial well being of children following war and terrorism. Experts from the former Yugoslavia, Israel, Palestine, NATO countries and elsewhere have contributed chapters detailing conceptual models and practical examples of community-based interventions for children. Some authors are experienced experts with extensive experience in providing community-based interventions for children during post-war reconstruction. Others have scientific experience conducting either research or program evaluation for such interventions. A third group of participants has experience in both the provision and evaluation of psychosocial services to children. These different perspectives are easy to identify from one chapter to the next and provide a creative tension regarding competing approaches to conceptualizing and implementing the most effective interventions. It is clear that such alternative views are complementary rather than contradictory. The purpose of this book, therefore, is to show how community-based psychosocial approaches can benefit from a thoughtful synthesis of both experiential and empirical strategies that link individual mental health / psychosocial well being with the health and stability of the community.

Many of our current social problems have been attributed to the breakdown or loss of community as a place and to the fragmentation of connections due to an extreme value of individualism in the Western world, particularly in the United States. Not all scholars and researchers agree that individualism and technology are the primary culprits in the loss of community as it existed in the middle decade of the 20th century. Nonetheless, people exist in groups, and connections are vital to their existence and in the daily performance of activities. The second edition of the Sociology of Community Connections will identify and help students understand community connectedness in the present and future.