An Integrated Historical Trauma and Posttraumatic Growth Framework: a Cross-Cultural Exploration

ABSTRACT

Trauma recovery for racial and ethnic groups experiencing ongoing systemic violence and discrimination requires a framework that simultaneously addresses harms and strengths. Historical trauma (HT) is a social determinant of health emanating from targeted mass group-level harm. Posttraumatic growth (PTG) focuses on positive shifts in individuals coping with trauma. This article highlights the unique contributions of these two distinct bodies of literature to inform trauma recovery. We explore areas of overlap, gaps, and tensions between the concepts to present an HT-PTG conceptual framework. The HT-PTG framework combines HT’s focus on socio-structural-historical experiences in racial and ethnic groups targeted for oppression with PTG’s descriptions of characteristics of growth. Specifically, five mass group-level domains of growth, centering healing, creativity, growth, and transformation are described. The ancestral legacies of the authors, including American Indian, Indigenous Mexican, African American, Puerto Rican, and Indigenous Taiwanese, inform the HT-PTG framework. This paper presents implications for trauma-recovery research and practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Trauma recovery
• historical trauma
• posttraumatic growth
• healing
• historical resistance
• American Indian
• Indigenous Mexican
• African American
• Puerto Rican
• Indigenous Taiwanese

Contact information and complete mailing addresses of all co-authors

• Ramona Beltrán, PhD, MSW, Associate Professor, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work, 2148 S High St, Denver, CO 80208

• Katie Schultz (Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma), PhD, MSW, Assistant Professor, School of Social Work, University of Michigan, 1080 S. University Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48109

• Zuleka Ru-Glo Henderson, PhD, LMSW, Lecturer in Discipline, Columbia University School of Social Work, 1255 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10027

• Lisa Colón, MA, PhD Candidate, University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work, 2148 S High St, Denver, CO 80208

• Ciwang Teyra (Truku Tribal Nation), PhD, MSW, Assistant Professor, Department of Social Work, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Rd, Da’an District, Taipei City, Taiwan 10617

Disclosure

There were no financial or non-financial competing interests.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.