Guidelines for international trauma work

Abstract

The trend to make children targets of atrocities secondary to war is one of the biggest human tragedies which stirs outrage, while simultaneously mobilizing spontaneous humanitarian impulses of wanting to help, perpetuated by the images in the media of children in anguish and pain. The issue of psychological trauma caused by violence has become a global epidemic, and the world's most pressing social and public health dilemma. Such traumatization has been shown to have long-lasting devastating consequences on normal growth and development. This results in much sympathy and concern on the part of adults who are deeply troubled seeing children suffer during war and the increasing epidemics of global violence. However, one quickly learns that such sympathetic impulses need to be harnessed in a productive manner. Knowledge and training in the psychopathology and phenomenology of mental illness is not enough. Alas, the most recent lessons learned in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina were many and the experiences humbling (Joshi, 1996).