THE JOURNAL PROJECT: WRITTEN EXPRESSION OF TRAUMA AS INTERVENTION FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
IN AYACUCHO, PERU
SHANNON CURRY WESTGAARD, PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION & PSYCHOLOGY
Civilians in Ayacucho, Peru, were exposed to a multiple-year civil war between Peruvian authorities
and the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) guerrillas. Ms. Westgaard's work addresses lingering distress, depression,
and community disruption as a result of this violence. The current project is a research and service program aimed at using
expressive writing as a mechanism for helping high school students in Ayacucho overcome lingering distress.
DO NO HARM ISSUES IN PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH IN
SRI LANKA
MICHAEL WESSELLS, RANDOLPH-MACON COLLEGE & COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
"Do no harm" is the first duty of psychological aid workers and
people working in response to psychological distress. International psychosocial work is committed to the principle of harm reduction,
but in practice there has been little work examining the potential negative impact of large-scale psychosocial services in response
to traumatic events. Dr. Wessel's work focuses on empirical work illuminating how the principle of doing no harm was played
out during the psychosocial response to the Indian Ocean Tsunami. This project will impact future service delivery, and
identify ways that psychosocial response can better live up to the ideal of doing no harm.
RECONCILIATION AND MENTAL HEALTH IN VICTIMS OF THE KHMER ROUGE REGIME
CHRISTINE KNAEVELSRUD,
TREATMENT CENTER FOR TORTURE VICTIMS / BEHANDLUNGSZENTRUM FÜR FOLTEROPFER
The intention of truth and reconciliation commissions is to
foster healing by encouraging open discussion and, when possible, reconciliation between formerly opposing forces. Dr. Knaevelsrud's
work focuses on the relationship between these variables and recovery from traumatic experiences. The current project examines the
relationship between willingness to forgive and reconcile and mental health in survivors of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, and also
will track how this interacts with and is affected by Cambodia's recently constituted reconciliation Tribunal.
EVALUATING THE GROUP INTERVENTION
"WRITING FOR RECOVERY": A SHORT TERM INTERVENTION AIMED TO REDUCE SYMPTOMS OF PTSD, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION IN TRAUMATIZED ADOLESCENTS
JON CHRISTIAN LABERG, UNIVERSITY OF BERGEN DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY
Children living in conditions of violent conflict are a
vulnerable group at increased risk of long-term psychological distress. Dr. Laberg's work focuses on children living in
Gaza City, an area exposed to violent conflict between multiple state and non-state groups. The current project is a research
and service project providing evidence on the effectiveness of the "Writing for Recovery" therapeutic approach. Due to the
recent conflict in Gaza, this project is expected to be conducted through 2010.