Biological Consequences and Transgenerational Impact of Violence and Abuse Every year, more than 1 million children are exposed to sexual or physical abuse or neglect in the United States.1 Childhood physical or sexual abuse is associated with adult health problems, including somatic symptoms and medical symptoms, such as heart disease, psychological problems, and substance abuse; for many variables, this association is as strong as for patients who are currently experiencing abuse.2
Symposium on Psychology and National Security at the Italian Embassy The Embassy of Italy in Washington, DC recently hosted the first of 2 workshops on Leaders and Terrorists: Psychological Perspectives on National Security. The well-attended symposium drew upon the growing interest in exploring and utilizing all the elements of national power, including so-called “soft power”—the ability to attract and persuade others in order to influence their behavior and obtain desired outcomes.
The Adolescent Brain Is Different: Criminal Responsibility Consider this vignette: Sixteen-year-old John and 2 friends go to a club where they get into a verbal argument with 3 members of a rival gang. After receiving a particularly gross insult, John pulls out a handgun and fires 3 shots at one of the gang members. He misses, but one of his shots hits a 15-year-old girl in the head and kills her. John is tried in adult criminal court and is convicted of murder.
Returning Veterans With Addictions Members of the military returning from combat operations have high rates of substance abuse. They also often exhibit a co-occurring triad of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), and pain, which complicates the problems with substance abuse.
The Science and Politics of PTSD The first half of the 20th century saw 2 world wars, indiscriminate aerial bombing of civilians, the dropping of the atomic bomb, and the Holocaust—all of which created intense trauma for soldiers and civilians.
Treating Self-Harm in Children and Adolescents Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is a behavior in which a person commits an act with the purpose of physically harming himself or herself with or without a real intent of suicide.1
Reconstructing How My Parents Survived the Shoah (1939-1945) I was 9 years old in December 1959 when I left and 60 in July 2011 when I returned to Lodz, Poland. My return—a journey through time as well as space—was a continuation of a trip from my home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where I teach and practice clinical and forensic psychiatry, to Berlin, where I gave a number of presentations at a conference of the International Academy of Law and Mental Health (IALMH).
Patient Violence Against Health Care Professionals It is contrary to clinical experience that a patient would want to harm a physician or allied professional who is trying to help. Nonetheless, clinicians inevitably encounter disgruntled, angry, and deranged patients. The reasons for violence inflicted against clinicians are many and varied.
Assessment and Diagnosis of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a chronic and debilitating mental condition that develops in response to catastrophic life events, such as military combat, sexual assault, and natural disasters.
