Citation

Pfefferbaum B. Curr. Psychiatry Rep. 2020; 22(8): e39.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s11920-020-01163-2

PMID

32514785

Abstract

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This paper traces advances in our knowledge about children's exposure and reactions to terrorist events over the last 25 years, beginning with the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and offers observations about cross-cutting issues including implications for services.
RECENT FINDINGS: Direct and indirect interpersonal exposures have been examined in community samples and in samples of children selected because of their event experiences. Despite its present exclusion from the stressor criterion for a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder, considerable research has documented an association between children's initial subjective reaction and outcomes. Few studies have examined the influence of community or distant effects on outcomes, but contact with media coverage has been well studied. This review confirms the central role of exposure in influencing children's reactions to terrorist incidents and supports recent efforts to distinguish specific experiences that constitute children's event exposures.

Language: en

Keywords

Children; Exposure; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Dose-response relationship; Oklahoma City bombing; Terrorist event