Citation

Hernández P. Am. J. Orthopsychiatry 2002; 72(1): 16-25.

Affiliation

Department of Counseling and School Psychology, San Diego State University, College of Education, California 92182-1179, USA. pilarhm@hotmail.com

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, American Orthopsychiatric Association, Publisher Wiley Blackwell)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

14964591

Abstract

A contextual understanding of the concept of trauma is proposed through a study of its meaning in a Latin American context facing war and political repression. This article explores the contributions of narrative and liberation psychology to understanding politically based trauma. It critiques the relationship between the concept of trauma and the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder. It analyzes how Colombian human rights activists make sense of the political persecution and trauma in their work. The author argues that the kind of experiences that these activists have endured go beyond the category of stress and can best be understood as traumatic within the context of the current medium-intensity war in Colombia.

Language: en