Trauma, Recovery, and Growth: Positive Psychological Perspectives on Posttraumatic Stress

The latest theory and research on understanding posttraumatic stressand its treatment, providing evidence-based clinical interventionsusing techniques drawn from positive psychology It is known that exposure to stressful and traumatic events can have severe and chronic psychological consequences. At the same time-mindful of the suffering often caused by trauma-there is also a growing body of evidence testifying to posttraumatic growth: the positive psychological changes that can result for survivors of trauma. Blending these two areas of research and exploring the relevance of positive psychology to trauma practice, Trauma, Recovery, and Growth: Positive Psychological Perspectives on Posttraumatic Stress provides clinicians with the resources they need to implement positive psychology interventions in their trauma treatment across a spectrum of?therapeutic perspectives, including cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, humanistic, existential, and group therapies. Featuring contributions by internationally renowned researchers and practitioners and edited by experts in the field of positive psychology who have worked with survivors of trauma in the facilitation of their resilience, recovery, and growth, this timely book is divided into four parts: Toward an Integrative Positive Psychology of Posttraumatic Experience Growth and Distress in Social, Community, and Interpersonal Contexts Clinical Approaches and Therapeutic Experiences of Managing Distress and Facilitating Growth Beyond the Stress-Growth Distinction: Issues at the Cutting Edge of Theory and Practice Trauma, Recovery, and Growth explores the role positive psychology can play in how clinical practitioners treat and work with survivors of stressful and traumatic events and offers an optimistic perspective in the treatment of those who suffer posttraumatic stress following devastating events such as terrorist attacks, childhood sexual abuse, cancer, and war.

Table of Contents:
Preface. Contributors. Part I: Toward An Integrative Positive Psychology of Posttraumatic Experience. 1. Positive Psychological Perspectives on Posttraumatic Stress: An Integrative Psychosocial Framework (Stephen Joseph and P. Alex Linley) 2. Psychological Assessment of Growth Following Adversity: A Review (Stephen Joseph and P. Alex Linley) Part II: Growth and Distress in Social Community, and Interpersonal Contexts. 3. Resilience and Thriving in a Time of Terrorism (Leslie A. Morland, Lisa D. Butler, and Gregory A. Leskin) 4. Positive Effects of Terrorism and Posttraumatic Growth: An Individual and Community Perspective (Carmelo Vazquez, Pau Perez-Sales, and Gonzalo Hervas) 5. Posttraumatic Growth and Immigration: theory, research and Practice Implications (Tzipi Weiss and Roni Berger) 6. Broken Vows: Divorce as a Spiritual Trauma and Its Implications for Growth and Decline (Annette Mahoney< Elizabeth J. Krumrei, and Kenneth I. Pargament) 7. Growth Through Loss and Adversity in close Relationships (John H. Harvey) 8. Beyond Survival: Growing out of Childhood Sexual Abuse (Rachel Lev-Wiesel) 9. Posttraumatic Growth Following Sexual Assault (Patricia A. Frazier and Margit I. Berman) Part III: Clinical Approaches and Therapeutic Experiences of Managing Distress and Facilitating Growth. 10. Facilitating Posttraumatic Growth Following Cancer (Matthew J. Cordova) 11. Group-Based Therapies for Benefit Finding in Cancer (Suzanne C. Lechner, Brenda L. Stoelb, and Michael H. Antoni) 12. Using a Life Span Model to Promote Recovery and Growth in Traumatized Veterans (Judith A. Lyons) 13. Recovery from Brain Injury and Positive Rehabilitation Practice (Joanna Collicutt McGrath) 14. Professional Quality of Life and Trauma Therapists(Debra Larsen and Beth Hudnall Stamm) Part IV: Beyond the Stress-Growth Distinction: Issues at the Cutting Edge of Theory and Practice. 15. A Contrarian View of Growth Following Adversity (Julian D. Ford, Howard Tennen, and David Albert) 16. The Paradox of Struggling with Trauma: Guidelines for Practice and Directions for Research (Lawrence G. Calhoun and Richard G. Tedeschi) 17. Reflections on Theory and Practice in Trauma, Recovery, and Growth: A Paradigm Shift for the Field of Traumatic Stress (Stephen Joseph and P. Alex Linley) Author Index. Subject Index.

About the Author :
Stephen Joseph, PhD, is Professor of Psychology, Health and Social Care at The University of Nottingham, where he is codirector of the Centre for Trauma, Resilience and Growth and an Honorary Consultant Psychologist in Psychotherapy at Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust. P. Alex Linley, PhD, is Director of the Centre for Applied Positive Psychology, Coventry, United Kingdom (see www.cappeu.org). His work is dedicated to the applications of positive psychology, and includes roles as an Associate Editor of The Journal of Positive Psychology and the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Positive Psychology.

Review :
"The first section of this book provides a concise overview of the history of treating posttraumatic stress, which has in the past focused on an illness ideology that emphasizes deficits and abnormal functioning as opposed to health adaptation." (Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, Winter 2009) "In sum, TRG is an important contribution to the growing literature on positive psychology. It should be on the reading list of any clinician who is dealing with trauma survivors. It presents a welcome contrast to the immense volume of material on psychopathology following trauma." (PsycCRITIQUES; 1/28/09)