Managing Culturally Learned Assumptions in Article Review

However, the purpose of the article is to explain how 9/11 changed the approach to psychological intervention. The article discusses advances that have been made in a variety of areas, including different ways to assess needs, screen potential clients, determine the efficacy of programs, and look at how different programs impact survivors (Watson, 2011). What the article reveals is that there have been significant differences in how psychological interventions are conducted post 9/11. Not surprisingly, they found that traumatic bereavement counseling is not yet an adequately developed area. First, they suggested that disaster response could be better coordinated to respond to huge disasters like 9/11. Next, they discussed how policy decisions are needed to enhance federal funding and access to services. They also discuss the fact that traumatic bereavement represents an area for critical future research.

This article is important in the approach to both interview and diagnosing, not so much for the information that it provides, but for the fact that it identifies that there is a tremendous lack of resources available linked to traumatic bereavement.The country had not experienced an event like 9/11 prior to its occurrence, and, unlike some countries where terrorism and its aftermath are common occurrences, did not have a coordinated mental health response to the 9/11 attacks. Practitioners have to be aware that they may not have sufficient background training and information to adequately deal with someone who is a 9/11 survivor, because it is very possible that the diagnosis process would be different than for known disorders. In fact, while one would assume that PTSD and its treatment would be applicable in the wake of a disaster, the reality is that there is simply insufficient information and research to make that conclusion.

References

Pedersen, P.B. (1997). Managing culturally learned assumptions. In Culture-centered counseling interventions: Striving for accuracy, (pp.27-43). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Watson, P., Brymer,….....