Trauma, Survival and Resilience in War Zones: The psychological impact of war in Sierra Leone and beyond

Description

This book, based upon a series of psychological research studies, examines Sierra Leone as a case study of a constructivist and narrative perspective on psychological responses to warfare, telling the stories of a range of survivors of the civil war. The authors explore previous research on psychological responses to warfare while providing background information on the Sierra Leone civil war and its context. Chapters consider particular groups of survivors, including former child soldiers, as well as amputee footballers, mental health service users and providers, and refugees. Implications of the themes emerging from this research are considered with respect to how new understandings can inform current models of trauma and work with its survivors. Amongst the issues concerned will be post-traumatic stress and post-traumatic growth; resilience; mental health service provision; perpetration of atrocities; and forgiveness. The book also provides a critical consideration of the appropriateness of the use of Western concepts and methods in an African context. Drawing upon psychological theory and rich narrative research, Trauma, Survival and Resilience in War Zones will appeal to researchers and academics in the field of clinical psychology, as well as those studying post-war conflict zones. Cover Title Copyright Contents Preface PART 1 Background 1 A typical encounter in Freetown 2 Psychological responses to warfare 3 The people of Sierra Leone 4 Eleven years of civil war and eleven years of recovery PART 2 Survivors’ stories 5 Child soldiers’ stories: killing was the order of the day 6 Amputees’ stories: reconstructing life as a one-foot person 7 Mental health service users’ and providers’ stories: heredity, environment or demons? 8 Stories from within mental health settings: social context as a frame and a chain 9 Refugees’ stories: walking for your life PART 3 Implications 10 Post-traumatic stress, growth and resilience 11 Mental health service provision 12 Perpetration of violence 13 Forgiveness and reconciliation 14 Culture, society and ways of understanding 15 Lessons learnt Appendix Index