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THE SCIENCE OF TRA UMA PRACTICE

Remembering to Wonder

The Place of Scientific Research in Clinical Trauma Practice

Pages 59-79 | Received 15 Feb 2001, Accepted 22 Mar 2001, Published online: 15 Oct 2008
 

Abstract

It has been argued that there are basic and unavoidable incompatibilities between the science and the profession of psychology. This article challenges this claim, and explains why it is important for trauma therapists to reject this distinction. Misleading descriptions of “science,” together with pejorative and simplistic descriptions of complex clinical tasks, have led to a backlash against research and science within our sub-field. The trauma therapy field would benefit if clinicians learn to reclaim their right to define “scientific trauma treatment” from non-clinicians, and if trauma therapists more frequently publicly affirm their commitment to the values associated with this model. The relevance to trauma practice of the scientific principles of valuing confusion and wonder, respect for demand characteristics, awareness of the illusory correlation phenomenon, avoidance of confirmation bias, and emphasis on magnitude over the statistical significance of effects is considered. There is a great need within the field of trauma assessment and treatment for bridging documents-articles, chapters, and texts that bring research findings into service of a broader clinical task. The Journal of Trauma Practice represents an opportunity to create a forum for such works, and for maintenance of a new and more scientific trauma therapy community.

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