Zusammenfassung der Ressource
Critical Incidents: Explaining Reactions
- Life-Belief Model (Janoff-Bulman, 1985):
critical incidents lead us to become aware
of our own mortality and vulnerability,
search for meaning ("why me?"), and
question our beliefs about ourselves.
- Established core beliefs violated by critical incidents = we are invulnerable, safe, and
secure; life has meaning and purpose; we are good and respectable people
- Human Needs Model (McCann & Pearlman, 1990): critical incidents
disrupt people's core beliefs/expectations/assumptions about life,
challenge people's basic needs, and lead them to question and
change their view of how these basic needs can be met
- People have core beliefs, expectations, and assumptions
about life. They also have a need for stability, safety, trust,
self-esteem, independence, power, and closeness.
- Crisis Intervention Theory (Caplan, 1964):
Typically, cognitive-emotional aspects in
human experience are in balance. Traumatic
events create an imbalance and lead to an
emotional crisis.
- Reactions across 4 stages:
impact, withdrawal/confusion,
adjustment, reconstruction
- Grief and Bereavement Theory (Hindmarch, 2002)
- Phase 1: Denial. Characterised by shock, disbelief, sense of unreality. Task = accept
reality of loss. Method = facing loss by e.g. rituals, talking.
- Phase 2: Pain distress. Characterised by anger, guilt, worthlessness, searching. Task = to
experience pain of grief. Method = weeping, raging, talking.
- Phase 3: Realisation. Characterised by depression, apathy, fantasy ("if only"). Task = to
adjust to life without deceased. Method = resolving practical issues, making sense.
- Phase 4: Resolution. Characterised by readiness to engage in new activities and
relationships. Task = to reinvest emotional energy in new relationships. Method = looking to
new activities and people, exploring new options.
- Other theoretical perspectives
- Emotional processing theory (Rachman, 1980)
- Information processing theory (Horowitz et al, 1979)
- Dual representation theory (Brewin et al, 1996)
- Psychosocial theory (Joseph et al, 1997)