What is trauma?

Traumas are emotionally overwhelming, highly upsetting events that may involve actual or threatened death, serious injury, or violence [1].

  • 61–85% of males and 50–77% of females will be exposed to trauma at some point in their lives [2] [3] [4].

  • People’s reactions to traumatic events range from relatively mild distress that is fleeting to severe disruptions that make it difficult or impossible to function.

  • Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and dissociative disorders are mental health diagnoses associated with traumatic stress reactions. There are many other disorders that are also associated with exposure to trauma in childhood or adulthood.

  • Trauma impacts an individually both psychologically and physiologically, but also has an impact on the individual's social schemas and academic life. Furthermore, trauma has a great effect on our society and economy. Learn more about the various types of trauma and its impacts here.

  • Many traumatized individuals have additional symptoms such as physical health problems (e.g., headaches, fatigue), anxiety, and difficulty trusting others. Learn more about problems associated with trauma here.

Factors that moderate trauma

Risk Factors

A risk factor is a variable that is associated with a negative outcome such as higher risk for disorders.

Overall, the earlier age of child abuse and the longer the child is maltreated, the worse the outcome [1]. Chronic child maltreatment is a serious risk factor for a wide range of social, psychological, and medical problems across the lifespan, as demonstrated in a controlled, prospective study that followed children for 15 years and controlled for potentially confounding variables such as economic status and parental mental health problems [2].

Additionally, women are more likely to develop PTSD than men, and they are more likely to have chronic PTSD than men (22% of women versus 6% of men) [6] [7].

Protective Factors

Some variables have been identified as protective factors that are associated with relative resiliency to childhood maltreatment [3]. 

Resiliency is more common among maltreated children who have a supportive caregiver [4].  Adults who were maltreated in childhood have been found to be more resilient when they have a supportive partner and/or a stable living situation [4]. Family and community factors play a larger role in predicting resiliency than do factors related to maltreated children [4] [5].