Redesigning Research on Post-Traumatic Growth: Challenges, Pitfalls, and New Directions

Frank J. Infurna; Eranda Jayawickreme

Redesigning Research on Post-Traumatic Growth: Challenges, Pitfalls, and New Directions

Frank J. Infurna
Frank J. InfurnaAssociate Professor of Psychology, Arizona State UniversityClose

and
Eranda Jayawickreme
Eranda JayawickremeAssociate Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Fellow, Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest UniversityClose

Abstract

The literature on post-traumatic growth has been instrumental in highlighting the human capacity to overcome adversity by illuminating different pathways that individuals may follow when confronted with adversity. However, while the theme of “strength from adversity” is attractive and central to many disciplines and certain cultural narratives, these claims lack robust empirical evidence. Specific methodological issues include the ubiquity of retrospective assessments of post-traumatic growth. Conceptually, limitations exist in the examination of which outcomes are most appropriate for studying post-traumatic growth. The authors present an overview of directions that new research should focus on in order to overcome these limitations, with a focus on prospective longitudinal designs that incorporate multiple methods of assessments and the value of integrating these disciplines for furthering our understanding of the human capacity to overcome adversity. The book is divided into four substantive sections to more thoroughly examine the conceptual and methodological limitations of this literature: (1) current challenges in examining post-traumatic growth, (2) methodological advancements (with a focus on innovative assessment strategies), (3) research in specific populations (cancer survivors, US minority communities, armed forces personnel and older adult samples), and (4) new directions for research (focusing on examining event characteristics of adverse events as well as narrative identity, wisdom, and open-mindedness as key growth outcomes).

Keywords: post-traumatic growth, resilience, adversity, methodological advancements, cultural narrative

Bibliographic Information

Publisher:: Oxford University Press

Print Publication Date:: Aug 2021

Print ISBN-13:: 9780197507407

Published online:: Jul 2021

DOI:: 10.1093/med-psych/9780197507407.001.0001

Authors

Frank J. Infurna, author Associate Professor of Psychology, Arizona State University

Eranda Jayawickreme, author Associate Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Fellow, Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest University

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Front Matter
- Contributors
1 Growth and the Multiple Dimensions of Well-Being: A Philosopher’s Take on the Idea of Post-Traumatic GrowthValerie Tiberius
2 Current Assessment and Interpretation of Perceived Post-Traumatic GrowthCrystal L. Park and Adriel Boals
3 Post-Traumatic Growth InterventionsAnn Marie Roepke, Areti Zikopoulos, and Marie Forgeard
4 Using Dynamic Personality Theories, Cognitive Neuroscience, and mHealth to Uncover the Process of Post-Traumatic Personality Change in Women with Breast CancerLara M. Baez, Michael H. Antoni, and Aaron S. Heller
5 Using Methods from Personality Psychology to Study Post-Traumatic GrowthEranda Jayawickreme and Sara Etz Mendonça
6 Emotions and Positive Personality Change in Syrian-Origin Young Adults Who Have Recently Resettled in the NetherlandsOdilia M. Laceulle, Kinan Alajak, Eva Alisic, Zeina Al Sawaf, Haza F. Rahim, Renée Zonneveld, and Joanne M. Chung
7 Post-Traumatic Growth in Later Adulthood: Disentangling Shorter and Longer Term Changes Following Transitions into Senior Housing FacilitiesGloria Luong, J. Doug Coatsworth, and Sy-Miin Chow
8 Prospectively Examining the Effects of a Cancer Diagnosis on Patients, Spouses/Partners, and Their RelationshipElaine O. Cheung, Frank J. Penedo, Judith T. Moskowitz, Betina Yanez, Sheetal M. Kircher, Shilajit D. Kundu, Sarah C. Flury, and Patricia I. Moreno
9 Using Culturally and Contextually Informed Theorizing in Research on Post-Traumatic GrowthRebecca M. B. White, Gustavo Carlo, George P. Knight, Jenn Yun-Tein, Nancy A. Gonzales, and Alexandria Curlee
10 Modeling Growth and Resilience Among Military Personnel: How Using Different Models Yields Different AnswersWilliam J. Chopik
11 Studying Post-Traumatic Growth Across the Adult Life Span: Conceptual and Methodological ConsiderationsOmar E. Staben, Molly J. Gardner, Frank J. Infurna, Suniya S. Luthar, and Kevin J. Grimm
12 Considering Characteristics of Events in Research on Post-Traumatic GrowthMaike Luhmann and Ina Fassbender
13 Openness to Experience and Post-Traumatic GrowthMarie Forgeard, Elana Bayer-Pacht, Paul J. Silvia, Ann Marie Roepke, and Thröstur Björgvinsson
14 The Relationship Between Narration and Character Growth After Interpersonal Failures and TransgressionsLaura E. R. Blackie and Kate C. McLean
15 Pathways from Adversity to WisdomAnna Dorfman, David A. Moscovitch, and Igor Grossmann
16 Redesigning Research on Post-Traumatic Growth: Current Knowledge and New DirectionsFrank J. Infurna and Eranda Jayawickreme
End Matter
- Index

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date: 30 June 2022

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Redesigning Research on Post-Traumatic Growth: Challenges, Pitfalls, and New Directions

Frank J. Infurna
Frank J. InfurnaAssociate Professor of Psychology, Arizona State UniversityClose

and
Eranda Jayawickreme
Eranda JayawickremeAssociate Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Fellow, Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest UniversityClose

Abstract

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Redesigning Research on Post-Traumatic Growth: Challenges, Pitfalls, and New Directions

Frank J. Infurna Frank J. InfurnaAssociate Professor of Psychology, Arizona State UniversityClose and Eranda Jayawickreme Eranda JayawickremeAssociate Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Fellow, Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest UniversityClose

Abstract

Bibliographic Information

Authors

Share Link

Contents

Frank J. Infurna
Frank J. InfurnaAssociate Professor of Psychology, Arizona State UniversityClose

and
Eranda Jayawickreme
Eranda JayawickremeAssociate Professor of Psychology and Senior Research Fellow, Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest UniversityClose