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Defining Trauma: Terminology and Generic Stressor Dimensions 1
Author(s) -
Green Bonnie L.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1990.tb01498.x
Subject(s) - terminology , stressor , psychology , stress (linguistics) , association (psychology) , process (computing) , social psychology , applied psychology , cognitive psychology , clinical psychology , psychotherapist , linguistics , computer science , philosophy , operating system
The present report discusses vague and/ or confusing terminology that is employed in research and clinical work in the area of “traumatic stress”. It divides the stress process into three major aspects and suggests appropriate terminology for each aspect, focusing on the input, or stressor, aspect. Eight generic stressor dimensions are suggested that cut across different types of traumatic events, along with research supporting the association of these dimensions with stress responses. Recommendations are made for future research directions.