Cultural Diversity in Trauma Response

The topic of cultural diversity in trauma response has been dominated by mainstream conceptualizations of culture in the United States. In trauma psychology, the term culture is usually relegated to notions of race, non-Western cultures, socioeconomic status, or the so-called special populations (children, adolescents, the elderly, LGBT populations, members of religion sects, etc.). Research studies that address cultural variables in traumatology mainly focus on these groups' differential rates of response and exposure to trauma, differences in risk for psychopathology, vulnerabilities, and responsiveness to treatment.

It has been determined that culture is a crucial factor in understanding the development, maintenance, and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, individuals' values, beliefs, cultural idioms of distress, cultural factors related to the psychosocial environment, and dimensions of power and ...