Psychology Commons^™

Dissociation Differences Between Human-Made Trauma And Natural Disaster Trauma, Heather Merrell

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Contemporary psychiatric nosology defines dissociation as "a disturbance or alteration in the normally integrative functions of identity, memory, or consciousness" (Ruiz, Poythress, Lilienfeld, & Douglas, 2008; p. 511). Dissociation as a reaction to a traumatic event remains a controversial issue. This study explored for differences in the extent and forms of dissociation, intrusion, and avoidance in human-made trauma and natural disaster trauma. A total of 232 participants were drawn from 6 samples. Natural trauma was experienced by 2 groups in Haiti (earthquake), and one in Japan (tsunami). Human trauma was experienced by samples in India (abandonment, rejection/ostracism), Southern Sudan (civil …