97 percent of the homeless who participated in the study reported having experienced one or more traumatic events in life
A new study has found that trauma levels for the long-term homeless are far greater than the general Australian community.
The study also identified a relationship between trauma exposure, mental health difficulties, social disadvantage and long-term homelessness to explain how some people get trapped in a cycle.
Lead author of the Trauma and Homelessness Initiative, Associate Professor Meaghan O'Donnell says that only about 4 per cent of people in the general Australian community experience a traumatic event more than four times in their lives. But that figure was 97 per cent for study participants.
Of those who took part in the study:
● 37 per cent had experienced a fire, flood or natural disaster;
● 34 per cent had experienced a life-threatening accident, 40 per cent had witnessed one;
● 24 per cent had been raped after the age of 16;
● 17 per cent had been molested after the age of 16;
● 66 per cent had witnessed someone being killed or badly injured;
● 17 per cent had been tortured or were victims of terrorism.
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Category(s):Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) / Trauma / Complex PTSD
Source material from Probono Australia
