Collective Trauma and the Social Construction of Meaning (1 CE)
Course Level: Intermediate
This course is for: Social Workers, Psychologists, Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors and Students
Course by: Elizabeth Price, LCSW, LMFT
Content by: Hirschberger G (2018) Collective Trauma and the Social Construction of Meaning. Frontiers in Psychology. 9:1441.
Course Description: This course is intended for practitioners who work with individuals and/or groups that have experienced trauma. The supporting article details the ways in which individuals within a given society react to different types of trauma, and the consequent ways that such individuals construct meaning. This report also explores the process of meaning-making at the collective level among both victims and perpetrators. The article is divided into two parts. Part one focuses on victims, and their desire to remember and create a group narrative around the respective trauma. Conversely, part two focuses on perpetrators. An exploration of the changing nature of trauma is further considered with reference to the impact of trauma. Specifically, consideration is given to the way that individuals create meaning for the past, the ways that individuals navigate present challenges respective of the endured traumas, and related preparation for future generations.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe collective trauma and its impact on society and subsequent generations
- Summarize construction of meaning and understand how inclusion of traumatic events is important
- Understand the difference between victims’ and perpetrators’ social constructs of collective trauma
- Understand the impact of trauma and the way that findings are used to: construct social meanings for the past, navigate present challenges and prepare future generations
Course Outline:
- Read and understand Collective Trauma and the Social Construction of Meaning.
- Read and review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
- Consider the collective nature of trauma and the ways that meaning is constructed for victims and perpetrators
- Work through the post-test questions; bear in mind that answer selections should be derived from the respective journal article
- Return to the referenced article for any missed questions, or to review trauma from a historical, present and future-oriented perspective
Approvals: