Abstract
COVID-19, as a global collective trauma, poses unique challenges for clinicians, especially those working with victims of domestic violence. Despite the documented rise in domestic violence incidents, seeking help while at home with an abuser remains difficult, if not near impossible. In addition to heightened security concerns for clients, the shared trauma, or shared traumatic reality, faced by clinicians has created unforeseen challenges with boundaries and the therapeutic relationship. Applying the literature to my personal experience in the months since COVID-19 reshaped our norms will demonstrate that times of such challenge also have positive aspects and can create posttraumatic growth, benefitting both the client and the professional.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Ali, P. A., & Naylor, P. B. (2013). Intimate partner violence: A narrative review of the feminist, social, and ecological explanations for its causation. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 18(6), 611–619. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2013.07.009.
Aydin, C. (2017). How to forget the unforgettable? On collective trauma, cultural identity, and mnemotechnologies. Identity, 17(3), 125–137. https://doi.org/10.1080/15283488.2017.1340160.
Baum, N. (2013). Professionals’ double exposure in the shared traumatic reality of wartime: Contributions to professional growth and stress. British Journal of Social Work, 44, 2113–2134. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bct085.
Bauwens, J., & Tosone, C. (2010). Professional posttraumatic growth after a shared traumatic experience: Manhattan clinicians’ perspectives on post 9/11 practice. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 15(6), 498–517.
Boserup, B., Mckenney, M., & Elkbuli, A. (2020). Alarming trends in US domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. American Journal of Emergency Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajem.2020.04.077.
Boulanger, G. (2013). Fearful symmetry: Shared trauma in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. Psychoanalytic Dialogues, 23(1), 31–44. https://doi.org/10.1080/10481885.2013.752700.
Bradbury-Jones, C., & Isham, L. (2020). The pandemic paradox: The consequences of COVID-19 on domestic violence. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 29(13–14), 2047–2049. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.15296.
Cherry, K. (2020, May 22). Collective trauma from COVID-19. Retrieved July 24, 2020, from https://www.verywellmind.com/collective-trauma-from-covid-19-4844357
Dekel, R., & Baum, N. (2009). Intervention in a shared traumatic reality: A new challenge for social workers. British Journal of Social Work, 40(6), 1927–1944. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcp137.
Dekel, R., & Nuttman-Shwartz, O. (2009). PTSD and PTG following Qassam attacks: Correlations and contributors among development town and kibbutz residents. Health and Social Work, 34, 87–96.
Dekel, R., Nuttman-Shwartz, O., & Lavi, T. (2016). Shared traumatic reality and boundary theory: How mental health professionals cope with the home/work conflict during continuous security threats. Journal of Couple and Relationship Therapy, 15(2), 121–134. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332691.2015.1068251.
Gondolf, E. W. (1990). Battered women as survivors: An alternative to treating learned helplessness. Lexington: Lexington Books.
Herman, J. (1992). Trauma and recovery. New York: Basic Books.
Horesh, D., & Brown, A. D. (2020). Traumatic stress in the age of COVID-19: A call to close critical gaps and adapt to new realities. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(4), 331–335. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000592.
Nuttman-Shwartz, O. (2014). Shared resilience in a traumatic reality. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 16(4), 466–475. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838014557287.
Nuttman-Shwartz, O. (2016). Research in a shared traumatic reality: Researchers in a disaster context. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 21(3), 179–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2015.1084856.
Stark, E. (2009). Coercive control: How men entrap women in personal life. New York: Oxford University Press.
Taub, A. (2020, April 6). A new COVID-19 crisis: Domestic abuses rises worldwide. The New York Times.
Taub, A., & Bradley, J. (2020, July 2). As domestic abuse rises, U.K. failings leave victims in peril. New York Times.
Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (1996). The posttraumatic growth inventory: Measuring the positive legacy of trauma. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 9(3), 455–471. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.2490090305.
Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (2004). TARGET ARTICLE: “Posttraumatic growth: Conceptual foundations and empirical evidence”. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli1501_01.
Tosone, C. (2006). Therapeutic intimacy: A post-9/11 perspective. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 76(4), 89–98.
Tosone, C. (2011). The legacy of September 11: Shared trauma, therapeutic intimacy, and professional posttraumatic growth. Traumatology, 17(3), 25–29. https://doi.org/10.1177/1534765611421963.
Tosone, C. (2012). Shared trauma. In C. R. Figley (Author), Encyclopedia of trauma: An interdisciplinary guide (pp. 625–628). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Tosone, C. (2020). Shared trauma and social work practice in communal disasters. In J. Duffy, J. J. Campbell, & C. Tosone (Eds.), International perspectives on social work and political conflict (pp. 50–64). New York: Routledge.
Truman, J. L., & Morgan, R. E. (2014, April). Nonfatal domestic violence, 2003–2012. Retrieved July 30, 2020, from https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/ndv0312.pdf
Usher, K., Bhullar, N., Durkin, J., Gyamfi, N., & Jackson, D. (2020). Family violence and COVID-19: Increased vulnerability and reduced options for support. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 29(4), 549–552. https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.12735.
Walker, L. E. (1977). Battered women and learned helplessness. Victimology, 2(3–4), 525–534.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bloomberg, S. (2021). Reflections on COVID-19, Domestic Violence, and Shared Trauma. In: Tosone, C. (eds) Shared Trauma, Shared Resilience During a Pandemic. Essential Clinical Social Work Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61442-3_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61442-3_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-61441-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-61442-3
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)