Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that occurs when people are exposed to stressful, life-threatening experiences. Consequently, after exposure to such an event, many people may experience fear, guilt, or anger and may believe the trauma is reoccurring. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 5.2 million U.S. adults age 18-54 have PTSD in any given year. The prevalence of PTSD is even more problematic within the military where an estimated 30% of those who have spent time in war zones experiences PTSD. Researchers have been examining the impact of veterans’ PTSD symptoms on family relationships, and on children in particular yet there is little understanding of the residual impact of PTSD or its secondary effects on children. This study aims to begin to understand how the health care providers’ experiences and acumen may assist patients with addressing PTSD. Additionally, by exploring the treatments and experiences of physicians, further insight and a deeper understanding may be gained on how PTSD impacts family relationships, specifically, hardiness and parental skills. A secondary aim of this study is identify those factors that promote resiliency in hopes of creating new interventions to lessen the residual effects of PTSD and prevent intergenerational trauma. This study begins to explore the residual impact of PTSD and will contribute to inform future research to design new methods and tools which may assist physicians to address intergenerational PTSD. This study was approved by Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Institutional Review Board (IRB).

The aim of this study was to gain an increased understanding of how social worker’s in Sweden experience, manage and prevent secondary traumatization at work. It was a phenomenological and qualitative study were the results was collected through semi-structured interviews with social worker’s. The result has been interpreted from the coping theories by Lazarus and Folkman. The result shows that the majority of the social worker’s that we interviewed experience secondary traumatization and use different coping stratigies to handle said trauma. The main problemfocused coping strategies constitues coaching sessions and also simply being prepared. The more often used emotional strategies includes, among others, social support, self-care, reflection and avoidance. Social worker’s use different strategies during similar situations which is mainly based on their own personality, experiances and knowledge. A sense of purpose, competence building, and a balance between work- and private life are largely perceived to be the most important preventative factors, where both the organization and the individual need to take their respective responsibility.

Sekundär traumatisering är ett fenomen som drabbar många socialarbetare som arbetar med våldsutsatta klienter. Tillståndet eller symptomen kan uppstå när socialarbetaren tar del av klientens trauma som föranleder att socialarbetaren i ett andra led blir traumatiserad. Studien har genomförts med semistrukturerade intervjuer och ämnar undersöka socialarbetares upplevelser och erfarenheter av fenomenet. Studiens resultat presenteras utifrån en tematisk analys och kommer vidare att beskrivas utifrån coping och Kasam som teoretiska ramverk för att förklara och förstå upplevelser av sekundär traumatisering. Resultatet i studien visar att samtliga deltagare känner till begreppet sekundär traumatisering och kan beskriva på vilket sätt en individ kan drabbas. Många av deltagarna beskriver symptom som till exempel empatitrötthet, koncentrationssvårigheter och svårigheter att släppa tankarna på klienterna i privatlivet. Deltagarna anser att möjliga orsaker till att drabbas av fenomenet är kunskapsbrist både på arbetsplatser och under utbildningar, bristande stöd från arbetsplatsen samt svårigheter att dra en gräns mellan arbetsliv och privatliv. I resultatet framkommer också att deltagarna är medvetna om vilka copingstrategier som fungerar bra för individen. Många av deltagarna menar att det är viktigt att bearbeta tidigare händelser i sitt privatliv för att minska risken att drabbas av symptom på sekundär traumatisering. / Secondary traumatization is a phenomenon that affects many social workers that meet victims of violence or trauma. The condition or symptoms can arise when the social worker takes part in the client's trauma, the social worker becomes secondarily traumatized. The study was conducted with semi-structured interviews and aims to investigate social workers' own experiences of the phenomenon. The results are presented based on a thematic analysis and will be described based on coping and Kasam as theoretical frameworks to further understand secondary traumatization. The results show that all participants know the concept of secondary traumatization and can describe the impact. The participants describe symptoms such as empathy fatigue, difficulty concentrating and letting go of thoughts of the clients. The participants believe that possible causes of being affected by the phenomenon are a lack of knowledge both in workplaces and in education, a lack of support from the workplace and difficulties separating work- and private life. The results show that the participants are aware of coping strategies and how they work for the individual. Many of the participants believe it is important to process past events in one's private life to reduce the risk of suffering from symptoms of secondary traumatization.

<p>The aim of this study was to explore how professional helpers, who work at a clinic in South Africa, experience and are affected by their work in the assessment and treatment of child sexual abuse. Twelve professional helpers were interviewed using a qualitative, semi-structured interview. The analysis of the interviews resulted in five overall categories. These are; The work with children; Pressures at work; Motivation for doing the job; Influences on a personal level and Coping strategies. Our study reveals that all of the professionals are influenced by their work but most of them not to the extent that they cannot enjoy life. The people who, apart from working with abused children, also work within management seem more affected by their work. Thus one of the conclusions is that the professionals are influenced by the entire work situation and not only by the clients that they meet. Another conclusion is that the work with sexually abused children has an effect on the professionals'private lives and that boundaries between work and private life are hard to keep.</p>

The aim of this study was to explore how professional helpers, who work at a clinic in South Africa, experience and are affected by their work in the assessment and treatment of child sexual abuse. Twelve professional helpers were interviewed using a qualitative, semi-structured interview. The analysis of the interviews resulted in five overall categories. These are; The work with children; Pressures at work; Motivation for doing the job; Influences on a personal level and Coping strategies. Our study reveals that all of the professionals are influenced by their work but most of them not to the extent that they cannot enjoy life. The people who, apart from working with abused children, also work within management seem more affected by their work. Thus one of the conclusions is that the professionals are influenced by the entire work situation and not only by the clients that they meet. Another conclusion is that the work with sexually abused children has an effect on the professionals'private lives and that boundaries between work and private life are hard to keep.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka samtalsbehandlares upplevelser samt kännedom om sekundär traumatisering. Studien syftar också till att undersöka samtalsbehandlares tankar om vad som kan förebygga samt hur eventuella negativa effekter av att arbeta med klienter som upplevt trauma kan hanteras. Sekundär traumatisering innebär att själv bli traumatiserad efter att ha tagit del av någon annans traumatiska berättelse. Tidigare forskning visar att socialarbetare anses vara i riskzonen för att drabbas av sekundär traumatisering. Detta kan medföra negativa konsekvenser, exempelvis i form av utbrändhet samt fysiska sjukdomar hos den drabbade. För att svara på studiens frågeställningar användes en kvalitativ studie i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Två teorier, känsla av sammanhang (KASAM) och copingteorin, användes som stöd under analysprocessen. I studien utfördes fem intervjuer av samtalsbehandlare som arbetar med våld i nära relation eller vuxna i missbruk. Studiens resultat visade att tre av respondenterna kände igen sig i beskrivningen av sekundär traumatisering genom att de har eller har haft symtom. Ingen av samtalsbehandlarna hade fått kunskap om sekundär traumatisering under deras grundutbildning medan två av samtalsbehandlarna saknade kunskap om fenomenet i nutid. Samtliga respondenter upplevde att deras arbete var meningsfullt och lyfte betydelsen av det kollegiala stödet i relation till arbetet med klienter som upplevt trauma. / The purpose of this study is to examine therapists' experiences and knowledge of secondary traumatization. At the same time, this study aims to examine therapists' thoughts regarding how eventual negative effects from working with clients who have experienced trauma can be handled or prevented. Secondary traumatization can be described as a phenomenon where a person gets traumatized by someone else’s traumatic story. Previous research shows that social workers are at risk to suffer from secondary traumatization, which can lead to negative consequences such as burnout and physical diseases in the affected person. To answer the research questions of this study, a qualitative method in the form of semi-structured interviews was used. Two theories, sense of coherence (SOC) and coping theory were used as helping tools in the analysis process. Five interviews were conducted by therapists who work with domestic violence or adults in addiction. The result of this study showed that three of the respondents could relate to the description of secondary traumatization in the sense that they have or have had symptoms. None of the therapists had gained knowledge of secondary traumatization during their undergraduate education while two of them did not have knowledge of the phenomenon in the present time. All respondents experienced that their job was meaningful and highlighted the importance of peer support when working with clients who have experienced trauma.

Sekundär traumatisering är ett tillstånd som kan drabba yrkesverksamma som arbetar i människobehandlande yrken med traumautsatta klienter. Att bli sekundärt traumatiserad innebär att socialarbetaren blir traumatiserad av klientens berättelser. Denna studie syftar till att undersöka socialarbetarens förståelse och upplevelser av fenomenet sekundär traumatisering samt om och hur hälsan påverkas hos socialarbetare till följd av emotionellt påfrestande arbetsuppgifter. Studien ska även undersöka vilka strategier socialarbetare tillämpar för att minimera risken att utsättas för sekundär traumatisering. Genom en kvalitativ forskningsmetod har fem intervjuer ägt rum med socialsekreterare som arbetar inom socialtjänsten. Resultatet visar på att socialarbetare är en utsatt yrkesgrupp där arbetsuppgifterna ökar risken att utsättas för sekundär traumatisering. Genom intervjusvaren visar samtliga respondenter på symptom på sekundär traumatisering. Resultaten har analyserats utifrån Lazarus (1999) copingteori samt Antonovskys (2005) KASAM, känsla av sammanhang. Den sekundära traumatiseringens omfattning regleras utifrån arbetsmiljö, tidigare erfarenheter av trauma, egna strategier och egenvård. Resultatet visar även på att socialarbetare som tillämpar egna strategier för att uppnå välbefinnande löper lägre risk att utsättas för sekundär traumatisering. De copingstrategier som används som skyddsfaktorer är ventilering med kollegor, känslan av meningsfullhet kopplat till arbetet samt återhämtning. Studien visar även på att socialarbetarnas privatliv påverkas av deras yrkesroll. / Secondary traumatization is a condition that can affect professionals who work in human treatment professions with trauma-exposed clients. Secondarily traumatized means that the social worker is traumatized by the client's stories. This study aims to investigate the social worker's understanding and experiences of the phenomenon of secondary traumatization and if and how the health of social workers is affected as a result of emotionally stressful tasks. The study will also examine what strategies social workers apply to minimize the risk of being exposed to secondary traumatization. Through a qualitative research method, five interviews have taken place with social workers who work in the social services. The results show that social workers are a vulnerable professional group where the tasks increase the risk of being exposed to secondary traumatization. Through the interview responses, all respondents show symptoms of secondary traumatization. The results have been analyzed based on Lazarus' (1999) coping theory and Antonovskys (2005) SOC, sense of coherence. The extent of secondary traumatization is regulated based on the work environment, previous experiences of trauma, own strategies and self-care. The results also show that social workers who apply their own strategies to achieve well-being are at lower risk of being exposed to secondary traumatization. The coping strategies used as protective factors are venting with colleagues, the feeling of meaningfulness linked to work and recovery. The study also shows that the social workers' private life is affected by their professional role.

Att jobba med socialt arbete idag innebär att man i sitt dagliga arbete möter personer på individ-, grupp- och samhällsnivå som befinner sig i någon form av kris. Något som beroende på situationen kan leda till uppkomsten av negativa effekter, exempelvis sekundär traumatisering. Syftet med detta examensarbete var därför att undersöka i vilken utsträckning nyexaminerade socionomer upplever detta fenomen i arbetslivet. Utifrån syfte och frågeställningar sammanställdes fyra teman som undersöktes med hjälp av en kvantitativ ansats där datainsamlingsmetoden bestod av en frågeenkät som besvarades av totalt 126 deltagare. Utifrån resultaten av dessa teman framkom det att majoriteten av deltagarna inte har diskuterat fenomenet under studietiden och att de någon gång har upplevt sekundär traumatisering både i och utanför arbetslivet. Resultatet av den insamlade datan tolkades sedan med hjälp av två teoretiska begrepp: förebyggande och resiliens. Studiens resultat visar vidare på vikten av att informera socionomstudenter om de eventuella riskerna med socialt arbete samt hur dessa kan förebyggas och motverkas. / Working within the social work arena today means that you in your daily work meet people at individual, group and community level who are in some form of crisis. Something that, depending on the situation, can lead to the emergence of negative effects, such as secondary traumatization. The purpose of this thesis was therefore to examine if and to what extent newly graduated sociologists have experienced or are experiencing this phenomenon in their work. Based on the purpose and questions, four themes were compiled that were investigated using a quantitative approach where the data collection method consisted of a questionnaire that was answered by a total of 126 participants. Based on the results of these themes, it appears that the majority of the participants did not discuss the phenomenon during the study period and that they have at some point experienced secondary traumatization outside of and in their work life. The result of the collected data was then interpreted using prevention and resilience as a theoretical outset. These results show the importance of informing sociology students about the possible risks of social work and how these can be prevented and countered.