Post-traumatic growth and resilience despite experiencing trauma and oppression

KEYWORDS:

• Post-traumatic growth
• resilience
• trauma

This special issue examines the theoretical and practice implications of post-traumatic growth and resilience among survivors of trauma and/or structural oppression. The foundation for the issue are four articles that explore these areas with survivors of natural disasters, intimate partner violence, and/or structural racism. Understanding how individuals interpret their adaptation is essential because it assists researchers and clinicians to gain a comprehensive view of the many dimensions of surviving, thriving, and possibly overcoming trauma and oppression. This special issue includes large-scale quantitative studies and smaller, purposeful qualitative studies. Such breadth and depth deepens our understanding of the personal and environmental factors that assist individuals to persevere and grow from their struggles to heal and recover.

Adaptation stems from individuals’ attempts to survive and to heal in the midst of their suffering. These adaptations frequently carry deficits and costs to the individual. Growth and pain, therefore, are not considered mutually exclusive but instead are inextricable linked in recovery from trauma and oppression (Saakvitne, Tennen, & Affleck, 1998). The presence of growth does not exclude trauma-related aftereffects; in other words, growth does not necessarily alleviate grief, emotional distress, or suffering. There continues to be a limited understanding of the factors associated with successful recovery from a variety of serious and adverse circumstances, particularly regarding the intersections of large-scale natural or human-made disasters, intimate partner violence, and/or racism. In other words, we need to further explore how enduring intersecting traumas may serve as a catalyst for post-traumatic growth and resilience. Individual and environmental protective factors have been explored by researchers but remain underdeveloped concepts, particularly in regard to their relationship to trauma and oppression.

This special issue’s articles address promotive factors for enhancing resilience and post-traumatic growth in individuals navigating their recovery journeys. Resilience research recognizes the complex interaction of individual attributes, family milieu, and social context as indicators that play into the capacity to overcome adversity and remain resilient under stressful life events (Glicken, 2006). A complementary but distinct concept in relation to resilience is post-traumatic growth. In the aftermath of stressful or traumatic life experiences (i.e., the trauma has ended or the person is no longer in the harmful environment), many people report personal growth in the midst of their struggles to heal (Saakvitne et al., 1998). These positive changes are often referred to as “post-traumatic” growth and highlight the human capacity for transformation in even the most ominous circumstances.

The first article in this special issue titled “Post-Traumatic Growth 2.5 Years after the 2011 Joplin, Missouri Tornado” by authors Jennifer First, Nathan First, Jordan Stevens, Vicky Miesler, and Bryan Houston, examines the relationship between disaster experience, post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTS), and post-traumatic growth (PTG) among adults (N = 438), who experienced a major tornado in their community of Joplin (population = 52,000), Missouri. The study’s findings showed that increased tornado exposure and PTS was related to improved PTG. Additionally, greater communication among family, friends, and neighbors regarding the adverse experience was found to be highly related to PTG. These authors note how increased exposure and related stress reactions may heighten one’s search for meaning and interpersonal communication about the traumatic event, and, consequently, serve as a catalyst for PTG. Ultimately, their findings highlight how survivors, who have experienced disaster trauma and its negative consequences, have the potential to experience positive change or growth.

The second article of this special issue, by authors Regardt Ferreira, Frederick Buttell, and Kate Elmhurst, adds to the theme of postdisaster survivor growth, by identifying resources related to resilience and self-mastery for individuals confronted with the intersecting traumas of human-made disaster and intimate partner violence (IPV). This study titled “The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Resilience and Growth in the Aftermath of Postdisaster Intimate Partner Violence” addresses the need for research that focuses on the impact disaster has on the exacerbation of IPV, as well as victim self-mastery and resilience following a disaster event. Results indicated that protective factors enabling self-mastery for postdisaster survivors of IPV (n = 1,934) included possessing life satisfaction, being married, and exhibiting good/excellent physical and mental health. For non-IPV survivors (n = 25,906) postdisaster, protective factors included receiving emotional support, accessing mental health services, and being employed with a steady income. The empirical evidence on IPV recovery does not consider the specific case of the process and outcomes of resilience for disaster survivors who also experience IPV. Ultimately, this study’s findings add to such literature by differentiating the constellation of variables related to self-mastery for IPV versus non-IPV survivors of disaster.

In the third article of this special issue titled “Family and Cultural Protective Factors as the Bedrock of Resilience and Growth for Indigenous Women Who Have Experienced Intimate Partner Violence,” author, Catherine Burnette examines the intersectionality of gender, race, and violence among indigenous women (N = 49) in the United States. This ethnographic study further adds to the topic of IPV by identifying promotive factors that enhance this population’s resilience, growth, and recovery. Thematic analysis indicated several protective factors within the family including support, connectedness, and unity, along with enculturation of traditional Indigenous principles and values regarding ethnic pride, gender equality and nonviolence. For the participants in this study, families were involved in Indigenous women’s lives indefinitely, suggesting the importance of aligning with informal helping systems where IPV survivors already turn to for support. This includes not only nuclear family members, but also grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, adopted, and nonkin family members.

The fourth article in this special issue titled “African American Males from Female-Headed Households: Using Socio-Ecological Resilience to Navigate Their Way to College” by authors, Laura Danforth and John Miller examines the intersectionality of gender, race, and oppression among African American male college students (N = 22). This grounded theory study adds to our understanding of essential resources in this population’s social ecologies that enabled them to pursue college despite experiencing racism in K-12 education. Specifically, few studies have examined African American males’ perspectives regarding the role that single-mother families play in contributing to their resiliency and helping them eventually enroll in college. Ultimately, this study’s findings highlighted how their mothers’ non-negotiable expectation of college attendance encouraged participants’ precollege socialization and successful postsecondary success.

For this special issue, a key finding across studies underscored the importance of family and informal support for helping individuals recover, grow, and even thrive despite enduring harmful experiences. Post-traumatic growth literature, resilience research, and strengths-based social work practice contribute to a helping framework that optimizes clinical health practice. Although each of these trends has different origins (e.g., existential psychology, psychopathology, social work), they share common assumptions regarding the positive aspects of the human condition, including growth from adversity (Saleebey, 2012; Tedeschi, Park, & Calhoun, 1998; Wolin & Wolin, 1993). Ultimately, this special issue adds to such literature and challenges the premise that survivors who have suffered trauma and oppression will remain wounded or become less than the persons they might otherwise have been.