Vicarious Growth in Wives of Vietnam Veterans

Abstract

There is a paucity of research understanding the “lived experience” of psychological growth following vicarious trauma. This idiographic study explores the phenomenological experiences of wives of Vietnam veterans exposed to vicarious combat trauma over decades. Using semistructured interviews, data were collected from wives of Australian veterans and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Two main themes emerged: (a) “Living with the distress of vicarious trauma” and (b) “Vicarious growth.” The first theme describes the distress and struggle to interpret and understand the “what” of vicarious trauma by these women. The second theme highlights “how” they brought meaning to these experiences. Of interest are the domains of humility, love, gratitude, and empathy aspects of posttraumatic growth that are not captured by existing standardized psychometric tools. The importance of the insider’s perspective into the ongoing lived experience of family members exposed to vicarious combat distress over decades is discussed.