Traumatic Stress: The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body, and Society by Bessel A. van der Kolk, Alexander C. McFarlane, Lars Weisaeth

Synopsis

Now in paperback, this bestselling classic presents seminal theory and research on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Together, the leading editors and contributors comprehensively examine how trauma affects an individual's biology, conceptions of the world, and psychological functioning. Key topics include why certain people cope successfully with traumatic experiences while others do not, the neurobiological processes underlying PTSD symptomatology, enduring questions surrounding traumatic memories and dissociation, and the core components of effective interventions. A highly influential work that laid the foundation for many of the field's continuing advances, this volume remains an immensely informative and thought-provoking clinical reference and text. A new preface to the paperback edition situates the book within the context of contemporary research developments.

Annotation

The book contains black-and-white illustrations.

Booknews

Presents the current state of research and clinical knowledge on traumatic stress and its treatment. Six sections examine the history of individual and societal responses to trauma, acute traumatic reactions, adaptations to trauma, mechanisms and processes of memory, developmental and cultural issues, and treatment issues. Highlights controversies in the field such as the role of memory, the relationships between biological and psychological processes, and legal issues. Of interest to mental health and legal professionals. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Biography

Bessel A. van der Kolk, M.D., is Director of the Trauma Center at Human Resources Institute in Boston Massachusetts, a center for the treatment and study of traumatized children and adults. He is an Associate Professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the past President of the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies. He has done extensive research on developmental and biological aspects of the human adaptation to trauma, including studying the nature of traumatic memories. He was co-principal investigator for the DSM-IV Field Trial for PTSD. He is the author of two previous books on the human response to trauma: PTSD: Psychological and Biological Sequelae (1984) and Psychological Trauma, (APA Press, 1987).

Lars Weisaeth, M.D., Ph.D., is Professor of Disaster Psychiatry at the University of Oslo, Norway, and frequent consultant to the United Nations and other international organizations regarding approaches to treating traumatized civilians and soldiers.

Alexander C. McFarlane is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Adelaide and Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in South Australia. His research in the field of trauma is wide ranging and began following a large bushfire disaster which affected his community in 1983. His clinical work is with victims of a variety of traumas, including accidents, disasters, torture, and war.