Citation

Stasko EC, Ickovics JR. Appl. Psychol. 2007; 56(3): 386-395.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, International Association of Applied Psychology, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1464-0597.2007.00294.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Although posttraumatic growth is generally thought of as a protective factor for posttraumatic stress disorder, Hobfoll and colleagues (this issue) suggest that the benefits derived from posttraumatic growth are dependent upon the translation from cognition to action, an occurrence they term action-based growth. In their latest examination of traumatic growth in the face of terrorism, Hobfoll et al. reviewed five studies and found that posttraumatic growth was positively associated with posttraumatic stress disorder. This commentary addresses the strengths and limitations of the studies’ methodology and the theoretical and clinical implications of action-based growth. We speculate that the severity and chronicity of terrorism result in psychosocial vulnerability, such that PTG cannot ameliorate risk of adverse consequences. It is expected that psychosocial vulnerability may be related to all traumas falling above a certain threshold of severity. However, when cognition and action are linked—as they are in one of the studies of the Gaza disengagement—posttraumatic growth may be protective, even in the face of persistent terrorism.