Exploring Shared Trauma in the Time of COVID: A Simulation-Based Survey Study of Mental Health Clinicians

We examined the experiences mong mental health clinicia ns in Canada and the United States (n = 196) in this online survey study during the second phase of the pandemic (Spring 2021). In addition to using traditional survey items (e.g., demographics, scales, and short answers), we also used video-recorded Simulated Clients (SC; i.e., professional actors) as a novel method to elicit the participants’ assessment of the SCs and the psychosocial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using shared trauma as a theoretical framework, we analyzed both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative results suggested that although these mental healt h clinicians certainly reported experiencing psychosocial impacts of the pandemic themselves, these shared experiences with client and general populations did not greatly impact how they understood the SCs. Qualitative results helped further contextualize the clinicians’ own personal and profe ssional lives. Implications for clinical practice and further research related to shared trauma are discussed.
Source: Clinical Social Work Journal - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research