Trauma Coping Strategies for the Catholic Religious Men and Women Survivors of Kidnapping in the Southern Ecclesiastical Provinces of Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue XI, November 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186

Trauma Coping Strategies for the Catholic Religious Men and Women Survivors of Kidnapping in the Southern Ecclesiastical Provinces of Nigeria

Esther Oluwatoyin Amowe¹, Elijah Macharia Ndung’u, Ph.D¹, Joyzy Pius Egunjobi, Ph.D.,Dr.AD^1,2
1Department of Counselling Psychology, Catholic University of Eastern Africa
2^{Psycho-Spiritual Institute, Marist International University College}

Abstract : The study aimed at investigating the effective trauma coping strategies among Catholic religious men and women survivors of kidnap in Southern Ecclesiastical Provinces of Nigeria. It had a phenomenological design. Twenty-one survivors of which twelve were males and nine females were interviewed in a focus group using a semi-structured interview guide. A thematic analysis was of the data showed emerging themes of Relating with more people, having a wider social support network, not paying too much attention to the fact that they experienced the kidnapping, finding a rational and realistic explanation to the situation, being open to learning positive lessons from a very difficult situation, being compassionate towards their abductors, actively looking forward to ways to replace the losses they have encountered, plunging themselves into the depth of their prayers, praying for their abductors, and receiving some kind of professional counseling or therapeutic support have helped them to cope and navigate the path that leads to posttraumatic growth. Other themes that emerged from participants who seem to be struggling and are still traumatized are Inadequate understanding of their trauma by their conferrers, poor understanding of mental health issues by their superiors, fear of the costs of therapy, and that the recommendations of counselors and therapists are not often respected. The study recommends that Catholic Institutes of religious men and women, family members, and the society at large can incorporate these positive coping strategies into the trauma intervention and care of the survivors of kidnapping for them to navigate the path of posttraumatic growth.

Keywords :Trauma, coping strategies, posttraumatic growth, kidnapping, abduction, Resilience

I. INTRODUCTION

Traumatic events, regardless of their magnitude are an unavoidable part of human life. They can shake people to the heart by posing a strong challenge to their daily sense of peace, security and, the normal order in the world. There has been a great deal of effort and resources put into studying and understanding the broad range of the negative effects of trauma on mental health. Studies on the negative effects of trauma have helped people to understand trauma, develop coping mechanisms and strategies.

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