A Social Psychological Model of Account-Making in Response to Severe Stress

Abstract

This paper extends recent theorising on the psychology of accounts and account-making. It is argued that while work on this topic in the area of close relationships and reactions to stress is increasing, as yet too little explicit theoretical analysis and hypothesis postulation have been presented. The present statement amplifies further on the nature of the account-making process and articulates an hypothesised role of this process in people's reaction to severe stress. The paper also provides comparison of the present approach to accounts as people's explanations for events structured in story-like fashion and alternative conceptualisations of accounts. Overall, it is contended that the activity of for-mulating an account helps the individual cope with the psychological effects of severe stress. The paper discusses emotion, memory-cognition, and behavioural expectation as they relate to account-making. An agenda is also presented for future research in order to further elucidate accounts and account-making.

Caught Between Love and Money: The Experiences of Paid Family Caregivers

“…Scholars have found that accounts give people a greater sense of control over their environments, allow them to deal with emotionally taxing or stressful life events, and help "establish order in daily relational experiences" (Harvey et al 1990;Orbuch 1997, 459). Weiss (1975) for example, famously studied the role of accounts in the reconstruction of a divorced person's sense of self and found that the accounts themselves were central to an individual's ability to achieve closure and to "move on" in life (Weiss 1975).…”

A gale force wind: Meaning making by male survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

“…A gradually more sophisticated and accurate understanding of our world is a necessary part of adaptation (Harvey, Orbuch, & Weber, 1990). Resilient survivors of CSA almost always find a way to "make sense" of what happened to them, to make some kind of meaning of the place the abuse has in their lives (Grossman, Cook, Kepkep, & Koenen, 1999;Haddock, 2001;LevWiesel, 1999;Lyons, 1989).…”

“…For example, Harvey, Orbuch, and Weber (1990) refer to this process as "account making, " and Pipher (2002) writes of "healing stories." Although the accuracy of these frameworks is not necessarily related to how successful they are for individual survivors, there is some suggestion that the completeness of the account (Harvey, Orbuch, and Weber, 1990) and the extent to which it feels satisfactory to the survivor (Silver, Boon, & Stones, 1983) may be variables relating to how well they work for the individual. It is important to note, however, that disclosure and narrative, particularly for men, often come many years after their abuse (Sorsoli, Kia-Keating, & Grossman, 2006).…”

Working Through the Trauma of Sexual Assault in an Undergraduate Class

“…It is more than the simple acquisition of new information (e.g., about the realities of rape); active emotional, behavioral, and interpersonal reexperiencing are necessary as well. In addition to specific aspects of working through such as expression=ventilation of thoughts and emotions (Coates & Winston, 1983;Silver, Boon, & Stones, 1983;Silver & Wortman, 1980;Wortman, 1983) and feeling heard and validated by others (Coates & Winston, 1983;Wortman, 1983), the process typically includes the modification of psychological structures that are variously termed basic assumptions (about the world) (Janoff- Janoff-Bulman & Frieze, 1983;Wortman, 1983), attributions (Janoff- JanoffBulman & Lang-Gunn, 1988;Wortman, 1983), accounts (Harvey, Orbuch, Chwalisz, & Garwood, 1991;Harvey, Orbuch, & Weber, 1990), schemas (Gray, Maguen, & Litz, 2007;, life stories (McAdams, 1993), or personal=identity narratives (Harvey et al, 1991). Although each of these terms may have specific meanings and arise from different theoretical positions, nonetheless, they have much in common and often overlap in content and usage.…”

“…Although each of these terms may have specific meanings and arise from different theoretical positions, nonetheless, they have much in common and often overlap in content and usage. For example, Harvey and colleagues (Harvey et al, 1991;Harvey et al, 1990) have emphasized the importance of ''accounts''-explanations presented in story-like form for past actions and events-in recovery from severe stress. Their notion of accounts is very similar to the concept of personal or life narratives (McAdams, 1993;Singer, 2004) or ''narrative identity'' (Pals, 2006) which have also been identified as important components of recovery from trauma (Pals, 2006;Pals & McAdams, 2004;Thompson & Janigian, 1988).…”