Adaptive Strategies and Recovery from Rape

Burgess, Ann Wolbert; Holmstrom, Lynda Lytle

doi:10.1007/978-1-4684-7021-5_25

Cited by 49 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Adjustment of expectations is particularly important because unfulfilled expectations undermine perceived control; obversely, fulfilled expectations heighten perceived control. Because Averill (1973), Burgess and Holmstrom (1979), Lazarus (1966), Miller and Grant (1980), and other theorists concerned with this kind of control all emphasize predictability, we refer to it as predictive control.…”

Section: A Two-process Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing the world and changing the self: A two-process model of perceived control.

Rothbaum

Weisz²,

Snyder³

1982

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

1,733

1,279

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There is extensive evidence that people strongly value and are reluctant to relinquish the perception of control. Yet, both helplessness and locus of control theorists interpret various "inward" behaviors (passivity, withdrawal, and submissiveness) as signs of relinquished perceived control. As evidence, they note that inward behavior frequently is accompanied by causal attributions to limited ability, chance, and powerful others-all attributions that suggest uncontrollability. In contrast, we claim,that these attributions and the behaviors to which they relate may often reflect a type of perceived control that is generally overlooked. People attempt to gain control not only by bringing the environment into line with their wishes (primary control) but also by bringing themselves into line with environmental forces (secondary control). Four manifestations of secondary control are considered: (a) Attributions to severely, limited ability can serve to enhance predictive control and to protect against disappointment. Passive and withdrawn behaviors reflect the attempt to inhibit unfulfillable expectations, (b) Attributions to chance can reflect illusory control, since people often construe chance as a personal characteristic akin to an ability ("luck"). Individuals who make attributions to chance may exhibit passivity and withdrawal in skill situations, reserving energy and emotional investment for situations that allow them to capitalize on their perceived strength-that is, being lucky, (c) Attributions to powerful others permit vicarious control when the individual identifies with these others. Submission to a powerful leader, a group, or a deity sometimes enables the individual to join in their power, (d) All of the preceding attributions may foster interpretive control, in which the individual seeks to understand and derive meaning from otherwise uncontrollable events in order to accept them. When perceived control is recognized in both its primary and secondary forms, a broad range of inward behaviors can be seen as efforts to sustain rather than relinquish the perception of control.Factor analytic studies with children (reviewed in Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1978) and systematic observations of adults (e.g., Beck, 1967;Marks, 1977) have identified a This article was funded in part by National Institute of Mental Health Grant 1-RO1-MH-34210-01.The authors are indebted to Camille Wortman for her unusually thorough review of a draft of this article. Her comments added depth and clarity to many of the Central points.Requests for reprints should be sent to Fred Rothbaum, Department of Child Study, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts 02155. set of interrelated problem behaviors including passivity, withdrawal, and submissiveness (hereafter referred to as inward behavior). The popularity of the learned helplessness model (Abramson, Seligman, & Teasdale, 1978;Seligman, 1975) is due largely to its lucid account of at least some of these seemingly maladaptive behaviors (especially passivity and withdrawal). Adherents o...

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Section: A Two-process Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing the world and changing the self: A two-process model of perceived control.

Rothbaum

Weisz²,

Snyder³

1982

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

1,733

1,279

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Thus, while we consistently find histories of severe trauma in many psychiatric patients, strictly speaking, they do not have PTSD: Their traumas have become integrated into the totality of their personality organization. While they continue to experience life the way Kardiner described adult trauma victims: either on constant alert for trauma, or as having given up all hope of activity being able to influence the outcome of their lives, the historical referents for this stance usually have been lost.The evidence is clear that prior trauma predisposes adults to develop full-blown PTSD in response to later life stresses (Burgess and Holstrom, 1979;Hendin et al, 1983;Helzer, 1987). Although no studies have as yet been done to precisely map out the differential effect of trauma on people at varying stages of development, clinical evidence points in the direction that as people mature, stressful life experiences are either more likely to be effectively processed and overcome, or to be walled off and to affect only isolated aspects of functioning.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The trauma spectrum: The interaction of biological and social events in the genesis of the trauma response

Kolk

1988

Journal of Traumatic Stress

131

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When Kardinerfirst described the full syndrome of what is now called PTSD in 1941, he called the trauma response a 'physioneurosis," that is, a mental disorder which affects both the soma and the psyche. Now, more than 40 years later much knowledge has been gained about the biological effects of traumatization. Based on the studies of disruptions of attachment bonds innon-human primates, the animal model of inescapable shock, and numerous studies of traumatized children and adults, we are beginning to understand the nature of the biological changes which underlie the psychological response to trauma. This paper will explore (I) the nature of the biological alterations in response to traumatization, (2) how these biological shifts depend on the maturation of the central nervous system (CNS), cognitive processes, and the social matrix in which they occur, (3) and how these alterations can influence psychopathological and interpersonal processes. 274van der Kolk fects both the soma and the psyche. Noting that sufferers from PTSD continue to live in the emotional atmosphere of the traumatic event, he ascribed to them an enduring vigilance for and sensitivity to environmental threat. A stressor becomes traumatic when it overwhelms both psychological and biological coping mechanisms. This paper will examine how closely the psychological and biological dimensions of traumatization are intertwined and explore (1) the nature of the biological alterations in response to traumatization, (2) how these biological shifts depend on the maturation of the central nervous system (CNS), cognitive processes, and the social matrix in which they occur, (3) and how these alterations can influence psychopathological and interpersonal processes. THE NATURE OF THE BIOLOGICAL SHIFTS ASSOCIATED WITH TRAUMAPost-traumatic stress disorder has been described as phasic alteration between intrusive and numbing responses (Lindemann, 1942;Horowitz, 1976). This consistent pattern of hyperarousal alternating with numbing has been noticed following such a vast array of different traumas, such as combat, rape, kidnapping, spouse abuse, natural disasters, accidents, concentration camp experiences, incest, and child abuse, that it is reasonable to assume a biological substrate . Contemporary research suggests that the intensity of the initial physiological response to the trauma is the most significant predictor of long-term outcome (Kilpatrick et al., 1985;Holen, 1987;McCahill et al., 1979). Freud (1919) may have been on the mark when he postulated that "the traumatic neurosis [is] a consequence of an extensive breach being made in the protective shield against stimuli." During the second world war, Grinker and Spiegel(l945) observed that the severity of "combat fatigue" was related to what we now understand to be symptoms of catecholamine depletion, such as masked face, cogwheel rigidity, and tremor. Kolb (1987) has recently reviewed the numerous studies which demonstrate increased autonomic arousal in combat veterans with PTSD. The enduring nature o...

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“…Furthermore, those with reported diagnoses of PTSD have a high incidence of substance abuse, with research indicating that alcohol and drug abuse is common among at least one third of those with PTSD (Foa et al 2000. Single event crime victims also experience such negative consequences as fear, anger, and generalized anxiety (Hembree and Foa) as well as a loss of faith in the world, others, and their own capacity to take care of themselves (Burgess and Holmstrom 1979;Carlson 2005;Carlson and Dutton 2003;Creamer et al 1992;Newman et al 1997;Symonds 1975).…”

Section: Context Of Criminal Assault and Psychological Sequelaementioning

confidence: 96%

After the Assault: Cognitive Trauma Therapy with a Single Event Trauma Survivor

Beckerman

Pass

2008

Clin Soc Work J

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This article explores the specific context of a single event criminal assault, (i.e., a stranger non-sexual assault that occurred during a robbery) and shares the theoretical framework that successfully guided the clinician's assessment, treatment planning, and interventions. Based on a literature review and employing a case study, this article presents the potential norms of trauma aftermath following a single event non-sexual criminal assault. It provides an overview of those theoretical frameworks that have consistently proven effective with this population; this article shares the rationale for selecting cognitive trauma therapy and illustrates its application to an assault survivor.

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Adaptive Strategies and Recovery from Rape

Cited by 49 publications

References 9 publications

Changing the world and changing the self: A two-process model of perceived control.

Changing the world and changing the self: A two-process model of perceived control.

The trauma spectrum: The interaction of biological and social events in the genesis of the trauma response

After the Assault: Cognitive Trauma Therapy with a Single Event Trauma Survivor

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