One of the most common misconceptions I’ve encountered as a trauma therapist is the belief that resilience can be predicted by the magnitude of what happened to someone.
It can’t.
Resilience is best understood as a dynamic process shaped by the interaction of multiple protective factors rather than a fixed personality trait (Masten, 2018).
Two people can experience similar adversity yet emerge with different levels of distress, adaptation, and growth. While the event matters, so does how the nervous system responds, whether a sense of safety can be reestablished internally and within relationships, and what protective resources are available during the adverse event and in recovery.
In this article, I’ll introduce a practical protective factors framework that will show therapists how to assess resilience and plan interventions with greater confidence and intention.
Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our five positive psychology tools for free. These engaging, science-based exercises will help you effectively deal with difficult circumstances and give you the tools to improve the resilience of your clients, students, or employees.
It can’t.
Resilience is best understood as a dynamic process shaped by the interaction of multiple protective factors rather than a fixed personality trait (Masten, 2018).
Two people can experience similar adversity yet emerge with different levels of distress, adaptation, and growth. While the event matters, so does how the nervous system responds, whether a sense of safety can be reestablished internally and within relationships, and what protective resources are available during the adverse event and in recovery.
In this article, I’ll introduce a practical protective factors framework that will show therapists how to assess resilience and plan interventions with greater confidence and intention.
Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our five positive psychology tools for free. These engaging, science-based exercises will help you effectively deal with difficult circumstances and give you the tools to improve the resilience of your clients, students, or employees.
Source: How to Assess Resilience: The Protective Factors Framework
