Lesson 4: Child Abuse

Attention

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this lesson's material, students will be able to:

• Relate the ability to dissociate during trauma with long-lasting problems later in life.

Teaching

• Read "Chapter 5: Child Abuse" in Trauma and Recovery

There is a long history in Psychology exploring how people survive instances of trauma. While many of his ideas are outdated, Freud introduced us to the concept of "Defense Mechanisms". These mechanisms allow the psyche to protect itself from the stress and anxiety of the "real world". Below you will find a slideshare show regarding a selection of these defenses. I think this is a good place to discuss them.

Click HERE to view the slideshow

Assessment

Lesson 4 Discussion

In this chapter we are introduced to a couple of "Doubles"...Doublethink and Double-Self. Integrate this information into your conception of the dissociative ability that was discussed earlier in the book. How does this double-ness contribute to long lasting problems? If you have ever read the Dave Pelzer story ("A Child Called It", "The Lost Boy", and "A Man Called Dave") you may integrate this into your responses.

For more information on Dave Pelzer click HERE.