Emerging issues in traumatic stress studies

Abstract

This special section of the Journal of Traumatic Stress includes 10 articles that collectively present some of the key issues facing the field of traumatic stress studies in 2007. These articles draw on work that was presented at the 22nd International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS) Annual Meeting held in Hollywood, California in November 2006. There are three groups of articles presented in this special section. The first section, including articles by Amaya-Jackson and DeRosa, Wagner and colleagues, and Zatzick and Galea, concerns issues that are pertinent to clinical practice. These articles discuss particular considerations about the development, and application of trauma-focused intervention for both adults and children. The second section, including articles by Bush and colleagues, Lyons and Parker, Yehuda and Flory, and Ozbay and colleagues, concerns issues pertinent to biologic inquiry about the consequences of traumatic events. The authors of these articles discuss both the biology of short-term traumatic stress reactions and the neurobiologic mechanisms that may explain the relations between traumatic event exposure and long-term psychological functioning. Together these two first sections present articles that span the full range of interest in the field of traumatic stress. It is one of the particular strengths—and challenges—of the field of traumatic stress studies that it draws interest from scientists and practitioners whose interest truly