PSY140 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Acute Stress Reaction, Psychological Trauma, Hypervigilance
WEEK$2$POWERPOINT$NOTES$
Defining$Psychological$Trauma$
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DEFINING$TRAUMA$TERMINOLOGY$
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“Trauma”!à!ancient!Greek!word!for!‘injury’!or!‘wound’!
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Traumatic!Stressor!à!
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• events!that!involve!death!or!threatened!death,!actual!or!threatened!serious!
injury,!or!actual!or!threatened!sexual!violation!
• event!may!be!experienced!directly,!as!a!witness,!be!learned!about!(where!a!close!
relative!or!friend!experienced!an!actual!or!threatened!violent!or!accidental!
death)!
• event!may!be!experienced!as!repeated!exposure!to!distressing!details!of!an!event!
à!usually!in!a!professional!capacity!(e.g.!police!officer!repeatedly!hearing!details!
about!child!sexual!abuse)!
• does!not!include!indirect!non-professional!exposure!through!electronic!media,!
television,!movies,!or!pictures!(DSM-5!APA,!2013)!
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Ford$(2009)$
à
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Trauma!à!!severely!harmful!events!or!experiences!affecting!the!individual!or!society!!
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Physical!trauma!à!bodily!illness!or!injury!that!places!a!person’s!life!in!jeopardy!or!
causes!potentially!irreparable!damage!to!the!body!
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Traumatic!stress!à!biological!and!psychological!reactions!to!psychological!trauma!or!a!
traumatic!stressor,!including!acute!traumatic!stress!reactions!and!posttraumatic!stress!
symptoms!
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Posttraumatic!stress!à!persistent!problematic!biological!and!psychological!adaptations!
following!exposure!to!a!traumatic!stressor!à!including!intrusive!memories,!avoidance!
and!emotional!numbing,!hyperarousal!and!hypervigilance!
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Acute!traumatic!stress!reactions!à!biological!and!psychological!reactions!to!exposure!
to!a!traumatic!stressor!during!or!within!the!first!month!after!this!exposure!
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Trauma!survivor!à!a!person!exposed!to!a!traumatic!stressor!as!a!direct!victim!or!as!a!
witness!to!other!persons!being!victimised!
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Peri-traumatic!à!refers!to!the!time!in!which!the!event!is!occurring!and!immediately!
after!!
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Posttraumatic!à!refers!to!the!weeks,!months!or!years!after!the!event!
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Trauma-related!disorders!à!psychological!and!medical!problems!that!begin!or!are!
substantially!worsened!by!exposure!to!psychological!trauma!
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Numerous!psychiatric!disorders!other!than!PTSD!à!have!been!found!to!be!related!to!
(although!not!caused!by)!exposure!to!traumatic!stressors!à!includes:!
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• anxiety!disorders!
• affective!disorders!
• substance!use!disorders!
• dissociative!disorders!
• somatoform!disorders!
• eating!disorders!
• disruptive!behaviour!disorders!
• psychotic!disorders!
• personality!and!childhood!psychiatric!disorders!
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WHAT$MAKES$STRESSORS$TRAUMATIC?$
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Figley$(1986)!à!described!events!as!troubling!to!the!extent!that!they!are!sudden,!
dangerous!and!overwhelming!
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Foa$et$al.$(1989)!à!proposed!that,!while!trauma!characteristics!are!important!in!the!
development!of!PTSD!symptoms,!the!perceptions!of!the!event!as!unpredictable!or!
uncontrollable!have!much!greater!effects!
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Brewin$et$al.$(2000)!à!suggests!the!cognitions!we!have!about!the!severity!of!the!event!
and!the!likelihood!of!eliciting!severe!peri-traumatic!reactions!(physiological!and!
emotional!responses)!in!a!person!à!!key!characteristic!in!defining!the!event!as!
potentially!traumatic!
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PREVALENCE$OF$EXPOSURE$TO$TRAUMATIC$STRESSORS$
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Epidemiological!studies!à!exposure!to!trauma!is!relatively!common!in!Western!
societies!
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Exposure!to!trauma!within!one’s!lifetime!à!affects!approximately!30%!(Breslau!et!al,!
1998)!to!80%!(Kessler!et!al.,!1995)!of!the!population!
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Australian!National!Survey!of!Mental!Health!and!Well-being!(Cremer,!2001)!à!
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• 64.6%!of!men!and!49.5%!of!women!à!reported!at!least!one!traumatic!event!
during!their!lifetime!
• most!people!who!reported!one!type!of!lifetime!trauma!were!most!likely!to!report!
repeated!exposure!
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ACUTE$STRESS$REACTIONS$TO$TRAUMATIC$STRESSORS$
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Psychological!trauma!à!can!occur!after!exposure!to!a!single!event!and!or!multiple!
events!over!time!(“cumulative!trauma”)!
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When!people!experience!terrifying!or!horrifying!traumas!à!!
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• these!traumatic!events!trigger!a!variety!of!self-protective!reactions!
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Acute!Traumatic!Stress!Reactions!à!experienced!by!most!people!in!the!initial!stages!
and!after!exposure!to!trauma!
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• adaptive!first!line!of!defence!of!surviving!the!trauma!
• occur!commonly!
• Considered!a!‘normal!reaction!to!abnormal!circumstances’!(Herman,!1992)!!
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ACUTE$STRESS$REACTIONS$TO$TRAUMATIC$STRESSORS$–$DISSOCIATION$
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Dissociation!à!
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• characterised!by!feeling!emotionally!numb!or!detached!from!the!experience!
• viewing!the!experience!as!if!a!different!person!or!outside!one’s!body!
• feeling!dazed!and!as!if!in!a!dream!
• seeing!with!tunnel!vision!and!laser-like!clarity!
• having!gaps!in!memory!
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Most!theorists!agree!that!dissociation!is!a!defensive!coping!strategy!
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• that!is,!at!least!initially,!an!automatic!psychological!defence!mechanism!
• it!may!also!be!engaged!purposefully!à!allowing!individuals!to!withdraw!
mentally!from!overwhelming!psychic/physical!pain!and!or!inescapable!
circumstances!
• this!coping!strategy!is!seen!as!a!mechanism!of!down-regulating!the!emotional!
experience!of!psychological!distress!
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ACUTE$STRESS$REACTIONS$TO$TRAUMATIC$STRESSORS$–$HYPERAROUSAL$
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Hyperarousal!à!“fight-or-flight!reaction”!
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• refers!to!what!you!might!think!of!as!an!‘adrenaline!rush’!
• a!cascade!of!neuro-chemical!activity!that!activates!the!body!
• allowing!it!to!deal!with!the!current!threat!
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Document Summary
Trauma ancient greek word for injury" or wound". Usually in a professional capacity (e. g. police officer repeatedly hearing details about child sexual abuse: does not include indirect non-professional exposure through electronic media, television, movies, or pictures (dsm-5 apa, 2013) Trauma severely harmful events or experiences affecting the individual or society. Physical trauma bodily illness or injury that places a person"s life in jeopardy or causes potentially irreparable damage to the body. Traumatic stress biological and psychological reactions to psychological trauma or a traumatic stressor, including acute traumatic stress reactions and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Posttraumatic stress persistent problematic biological and psychological adaptations following exposure to a traumatic stressor including intrusive memories, avoidance and emotional numbing, hyperarousal and hypervigilance. Acute traumatic stress reactions biological and psychological reactions to exposure to a traumatic stressor during or within the first month after this exposure.
