Running head: Trauma and development

The Developmental Impact Trauma has on Children into Adulthood.

Sarah S. Isaac
College of DuPage

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Abstract

Traumatic events happen to everyone, in order to cope and find ways to overcome these periods
of distress is still something being researched by psychologists and psychiatrists today. All
though trauma impacts individuals of all ages, and races, this study is primarily focused on
children and how their development affects their growth process into adults. Amongst the many
techniques already used to treat victims involved in trauma, a few new ones are being unearthed
and many clinical trials have been conducted to test them. In recent studies a new therapy that
has been proven to work well is called Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TFCBT). This specific type of therapy targets children that have experienced a tremendous amount
of trauma, along with behavioral and emotional problems. By bridging together a stronger
communication between parents and children, this therapy has proven to aid in making the home
a safer place for children and parents to talk about traumatic times in their lives.
Keywords: [Traumatic events, many techniques, (TF-CBT), communication]

Trauma and development

The Developmental Impact Trauma has on Children into Adulthood.

"Most people are exposed to at least one violent or life-threatening situation during the
course of their lives (Ozer, Best, Lipsey, & Weiss, 2003)." However, a tremendous amount of
harrowing and stressful incidents in a child or anyones life for that matter can create a massive
impact on those individuals that have to face the repeated trauma day after day. The aftermath of
constant trauma often leaves its victims lost and perplexed with how to carry on living their
lives. A few of the indicators that could imply how severe these traumatic events have
relentlessly impacted their victims is if they show signs of loss of appetite, depression, anxiety,
social awkwardness, and often times being distant from those close to them. In radical cases
these factors take great precedence, however in other cases they frequently result in medication
for treatment often involving a psychiatrist and further therapy sessions.
As far as other cases go, such traumatic events can take different tolls on the individuals
and direct them onto a much more healthier and positive path. In these situations often times they
find themselves forgiving and moving on. It helps the victims develop a level of confidence in
their supporters and they are eventually able to cope in a manner that is less destructive. The
studies and data found in several clinical trials show the progress of different factors that have
overtime affected the individuals lives, how they handled it, and the influence it brought upon
them. Some questions considered while researching this topic are: Do some experiences
outweigh others in how the outcomes vary whether positive or not? Are the people that
experience such traumatic events, depending on age, able to recognize how to address the
circumstance and decipher a proper way to handle it? And lastly, are there psychological factors
that come heavily into play when figuring out when take aid in recovery? It is personal

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experience that drives this paper and the need to further understand the toll of the many
implications that life-threatening trauma can make on children through adulthood.

Several psychiatrists believe that children who hesitate to talk openly about their periods
of torment often lead a lifetime of internalizing problems. This behavior of suppressing their
situation becomes detrimental to their growth process into adults. As stated from an article
written for the Child and Adolescent Mental Health journal titled Trauma-Focused Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy for Children and Parents, child sexual abuse, physical abuse or domestic
violence affect up to 25% of children around the world, with potentially serious and negative
effects lasting into adolescence and adulthood if left untreated (Ammar, 2006; Chen, Dunne, &
Han, 2004; Nelson et al., 2002, Xu, Campbell, & Xhu, 2001). Trauma Focused Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is a psychological model used to treat children and adolescents
that have experienced difficulties with PTSD, depression, anxiety in a social or private setting,
and other related emotional and developmental problems. Also mentioned in the same article is
how TF-CBT works, Evaluation of TC-CBT includes several randomized controlled trials,
effectiveness studies, and ongoing studies for children experiencing sexual abuse, domestic
violence, traumatic grief, terrorism, disasters, and multiple traumas. The benefit of using these
therapy methods help parents and their children cope with stress related problems, as well as
figure out ways to implement the process of openly talking to peers, teachers, and any helpful
individual.

According to Judith A. Cohen and Anthony P. Mannarino, children often display

emotional and behavioral problems in different manners; these are described in three different

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problems affective, behavioral, and cognitive. In an affective problem, children demonstrate

the most excessive amount of characteristic disposition. These include, sadness, fear, anxiety, or
anger. Some children may develop excessive moodiness, or develop difficulty in controlling or
regulating their moods and emotional states. (Cohen, Mannarino, 2008). This specific symptom
is called Affective Dysregulation, which is caused by a multitude of problems, if a childs coping
mechanism becomes too weak then at this point a therapist does step in and begin to study the
child as well as where their problems stem from. An illustration used in the same article clearly
explains when a child shows affective-like problems and how a therapist steps in to examine the
crux of their problem and begin to work on it together, For example, a child may feel sad
because she is overly responsive to negative stimuli (her feelings are easily hurt), is under
responsive to positive stimuli or does not have adequate skills to access positive stimuli (she
doesnt know how to take a compliment, shes too shy to approach new peers, etc.). These sound
like similar problems but may require somewhat different interventions. Perhaps this child is
happy sometimes but later reinterprets that experience more negatively (i.e. has fun at a friends
house but later says she hated it). (Cohen, Mannarino, 2008). In this case the negative
connections the child made to each situation directly related to how they felt once they were left
alone. TF-CBT is a great method used by a psychiatrists and therapists, by following a simple
model they are able to get to the crux of a childs problem while helping them and their parents
work together in order to create a comfortable barrier where communication can be effortless.
This model may not work in many cases, however it is a great place to start. Consistent use of
the TF-CBT model in the future would make it possible to help develop children into adults that
can distinguish and manage their trauma symptoms in a levelheaded and realistic behavior.

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In other extreme cases involving sexual and physical harassment, the level of support
offered to victims is immeasurable, primarily because these types of abuse directly impact the
victims psychologically in a significant way. Often times its observed that sexual and physical
abuse seen in children can possibly become adults that either have difficulty with trusting,
hardships in relationship, or in the worst case scenarios use their own trauma and inflict it upon
those that are both close to them or in an illegal behavior. In an article titled Traumatic Events
and Posttraumatic Stress in Childhood from the JAMA Psychiatry journal, a trial where the
psychiatrists focused on a group of younger children, specifically "a representative population
sample of 1420 children aged 9, 11, and 13 years at intake were followed up annually through 16
years of age." (Copeland, W. E., Keeler, G., Angold, A., & Costello, E. J. 2007)). By using a
younger control group it is simpler to understand and target the source of the problems for a
child. The struggle in this experiment is to figure out when and how severely PTSD will impact
the children. Since traumatic events can sometimes be difficult to express for younger children,
they often do not talk about it and end up internalizing their problems. This experiment could
have been controlled and conducted much more effectively if follow-ups were done monthly,
with a professional. For the children involved in this case study to speak openly about their
tribulations, a monthly check-in would have given them the opportunity to be studied closely and
in return give them someone they could confide in. The trial did prove beneficial to the
individuals involved; since its chief focus was on the posttraumatic stress disorder and the
implications it had on children. In an educational environment, home, social settings, and health
wise.

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Many psychologists also state that order to develop into a fully functioning adult with out
any psychological problems, that the ability to cope with and discuss about uncomfortable topics
in a professional environment is essential to living a functional life. In adulthood it is commonly
found that coping with traumatic events is handled straightforwardly, this mechanism is referred
to as hardiness. Described by doctors Suzanne C. Kobasa, and Salvatore Maddi in an article
titled Loss, Trauma, and Human Resilience: Have We Underestimated the Human Capacity to
Thrive After Extremely Aversive Events? for the journal Psychological Trauma: Theory,
Research, Practice, and Policy apart of the American Psychological Association (APA),
Hardiness consists of three dimensions: being committed to finding meaningful purpose in life,
the belief that one can influence ones surroundings and the outcome of events, and the belief
that one can learn and grow from both positive and negative life experiences. Armed with this set
of beliefs, hardy individuals have been found to appraise potentially stressful situations as less
threatening, thus minimizing the experience of distress. For the hardiness technique to prove
useful, it requires maturity to be able to understand the situation and make a resilient decision
whether to fight or fly from a situation. If this technique were instilled in children it could aid
from a lifetime of anguish and torment. By attempting to seek hardiness in children at an
earlier age, then if any type of trauma were to suddenly take a toll on their life, it would be
managed head on and in an articulate manner. Other techniques that assist in the bereavement of
trauma in adults are, Self Enhancement, Repressive Coping, Positive Emotion and Laughter, and
a Broader Conceptualization of Stress Responding. Although most of these methods are applied
to children that face trauma, it is hard for them to understand and could be utilized towards them
in a much more age and situation appropriate system.

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Conclusion
To understand how trauma leaves a lasting impression on its victims, one has to
understand the numerous circumstances and how to cope with, and approach them. According
to OLeary and Ickovics (1995), there are three possible outcomes: survival, recovery, or
thriving. Those who merely survive never regain their previous level of functioning. Those who
recover return to their previous level of functioning. Those who thrive, however, move beyond
the original level of psychosocial functioning, flourish, and grow as a result of their experience.
Following traumatic events can either be a negative or positive period in and individuals
lifetime. Amongst the many clinical trials performed it was found that in order to cope in a
positive manner after a traumatic event, it is crucial to have a strong support system while
ensuring that the individuals social and environmental surroundings are suitable for a change to
occur. With constant support through reliance on religion, family and friends, or professional
help were psychologists able to find that the people in their trials were able to move on, grow,
and learn something from their experiences.

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