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Psychology vocabulary · Mental Health Conditions

Trauma

Meaning in psychology, with examples

/ˈtrɔːmə/nounCore term

In psychology, trauma means: A deeply distressing experience, such as violence, a serious accident or a disaster, or the lasting psychological harm that such an event can cause.

In Turkish: travma, ruhsal travma

How it is used

Clinicians use trauma for both the event and its effects: trauma survivors, trauma-focused therapy, trauma-informed care. In medicine, trauma means physical injury, so psychologists may say psychological trauma to be clear.

Example sentences

  1. Many of the firefighters in the sample had been exposed to trauma at work.

  2. Trauma-focused therapy helps clients process memories they have been avoiding.

Common collocations

  • childhood trauma
  • experience trauma
  • trauma-focused therapy
  • trauma-informed care
  • traumatic event
  • PTSDShort for post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition that can follow a traumatic event, with intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in mood and thinking, and constant alertness.
  • memoryThe ability to take in, store and later recall information and experiences; the word can also mean one particular thing that is remembered.
  • stressThe body's and mind's response to demands or threats that seem to exceed a person's resources, involving physical arousal, tension and worry.
  • exposure therapyA behavioural treatment in which a person faces feared situations, objects, memories or sensations gradually and safely, so that fear decreases and avoidance stops.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Mental Health Conditions

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.