ABSTRACT
People exposed to a traumatic event exhibit a variety of responses. Some develop a post-traumatic disorder, while others, having experienced a similar horrifying event, go on to live a life free of psychological distress (McFarlane and de Girolamo 1996). This difference in an individual's response to traumatic experiences suggests that there are differences in personal vulnerability to traumatic stressors (Yule 1999; Ullman and Filipas 2001). However, despite these individual variations in post-trauma responses, epidemiological studies show that some traumatic events cause a higher incidence of PTSD independent of other factors (Resnick et al. 1993; Kessler et al. 1995; McFarlane and Yehuda 1996). Following a traumatic exposure the availability and quality of post-trauma support and counselling has an impact on the speed of recovery (Perry et al. 1992). Taken together it is clear that post-traumatic stress responses are complex and are affected by at least three different groups of factors: a) personal, social and demographic differences; b) features of the traumatic incident; and c) post-trauma support. This study has been designed to examine some aspects of these three factors.
