Between hope and harm : a mixed-method study of trauma / Talal Alali.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Alali, Talal, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Psychic trauma--Research--Methodology--Case studies.

Psychic trauma.

War--Psychological aspects--Research--Case studies.

War.

Qualitative research--Methodology--Case studies.

Qualitative research.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Place of Publication:

London : SAGE Publications Ltd, 2026.

Summary:

This case study presents a life-long research interest in trauma, particularly war-related trauma. It was triggered by the 9/11 attacks in New York City, where I was living at the time. The case study reports on my PhD, which focuses on the civil war in Iraq and the Israel–Lebanon war. The research was initially designed to employ quantitative methods to investigate the pathological impact of traumatic events on individuals’ psychological well-being. Standardized tools—such as the Beck Depression Inventory and PTSD scales—were used to assess the effects of war on civilians. The findings are unexpected: although trauma has a significant impact, the majority of participants do not report lasting psychological disorders. This prompted a rereading of the trauma literature with an agnostic lens. Studies of different traumatic experiences—from war and displacement to natural disasters and personal loss—consistently show that most people do not develop long-term psychological pathology. These insights have deepened my interest in resilience and collective identity and lead to a shift from quantitative to qualitative methods, using discursive psychology to explore how individuals present their experiences. The analysis reveals that people construct themselves, their “traumatic” experiences, and others through complex, multifaceted narratives designed to achieve specific discursive ends. Positive notions such as hope, strength, and resilience are often incorporated into accounts of suffering. This indicates that qualitative methods are extremely important in understanding complex psychological phenomena.

Notes:

Description based on XML content.

ISBN:

9781036244927

OCLC:

1594889234

Publisher Number:

T301315