Preliminary Research On Evidence Of Psychological Trauma In The International Realm
Kaitlyn Maltese
February 2017
What is the evidence of childhood psychological trauma in the international realm?
The most common consequence of trauma, such as war and natural disasters, on children is the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (“PTSD”). There are two types of trauma that a child experiences that can result in PTSD.
Type I of trauma “refers to a one time, horrific, and clear cut life-endangering experience.” When “chronic stress and adversities . . . are a part of [a child’s] daily life,” it is considered Type II trauma. Based on the following research, it appears Type I can develop into Type II.
To predict if a child, who has experienced one or more of the traumatic events listed above, will develop PTSD, the AACAP Pactive Parameters for the Assessment and Treatment of Children and Adolescents with PTSD looks at three factors:
The severity of the traumatic event;
The parental reaction to the traumatic event; and
The physical proximity to the traumatic event.
Ongoing war results in unsolved military conflict, material losses, and economic disasters, which can heavily burden a child’s mental health and development. Children suffer from indirect consequences as well, including “malnutrition, ill health, and lack of education.”
The cause of this is the unexpectedness of war and conflict; it leaves citizens unprepared, both materially and mentally, evoking feelings of hopelessness. For children, it shatters the “fundamental, ‘childish’ beliefs that the world is a safe and fair place . . . and that one is worthy of protection.” This inability to prepare and be protected creates a sense of loss of control, which, once again, “impacts the basic human illusion of invulnerability and security.” In other words, a child may only observe or be involved in an one time life endangering experience (Type I trauma) but because that child is still living in a conflict area, he or she is living in constant fear that he or she may not survive (Type II Trauma).
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Preliminary Research on Evidence of Psychological Trauma in the International Realm