February 14, 2008
Surprising Patterns of Coping After Virginia Tech and Other Calamities
“Welcome to the high point of the afternoon,” said Robert S. Pynoos of the University of California at Los Angeles, standing at a podium at the AAAS meeting. “We have three-quarters of an hour on suffering and loss.”
Mr. Pynoos and a group of mental-health experts came together to discuss catastrophe and coping after earthquakes in Armenia, Hurricane Katrina, the war in Bosnia, the tsunami in the Indian Ocean, and the shootings at Virginia Tech. They have all studied—and helped—people who have lived through those disasters, and came to Boston to speak of lessons learned.
Russell T. Jones, a psychologist at Virginia Tech, presented some of the first in-depth research on survivors of the mass murders—a topic made even more poignant by the news this afternoon of mass shootings at Northern Illinois University. “Since 1966, there have been 41school-related fatal shootings, nine of them in college settings. And none of the nine have been studied,” he said.
In the months since horror was unleashed on Blacksburg, Va., he said, faculty, staff, and students closest to the shootings have generally shown the highest levels of distress. That isn’t terribly surprising. More important, however, is that his preliminary data indicate that people who are most likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder or depression are those with pre-existing emotional problems. That mirrors findings from Armenia, where people displaced by political violence 20 years ago and then hit by the devastating earthquake were particularly vulnerable. It indicates that prior stress can weaken an individual’s resilience.
Resilience was, however, more common than vulnerability at Virginia Tech, Mr. Jones said. “We found, with survivors of Hurricane Katrina, that many people, six months later, told us they felt greater purpose in life, or closer to God, or better able to achieve goals, than they did before the storm.” Mr. Jones is optimistic that a similar pattern will appear at Virginia Tech.
Following traumatic events, “it is not necessary that everyone sees a therapist,” he said. Typically those who do are people with pre-existing problems or who were most exposed to the trauma. “Most individuals recover well with support and encouragement from family and friends. Having people around to support you is very powerful.”
It helped that Virginia Tech was already a close-knit family, Mr. Jones said, and became an even closer one in the months after the attack. “Don’t ask me to define what a Hokie is, but I know I am one.”
Josh Fischman | Posted on Thursday February 14, 2008 | PermalinkComments
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Yes – recovery at VT is progressing, but for those of us who witnessed the carnage, April 16th will be forever on our minds.
— Gerald W. Berkley-Coats Feb 18, 08:28 AM #