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SUMMARY:Journal Club Session: Beyond PTSD: Cultural Scripts of Trauma in Cross Cultural Study
DESCRIPTION:The Red Cross Red Crescent Research Network is organizing a Journal Club Session with Celestin Mutuyimana.\nDr. Mutuyimana is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist with international expertise. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Zurich Division of Clinical Intervention and Global Mental Health and honorary affiliate of the Collegium Helveticum (ETH Zurich) and the University of Rwanda. His research focuses on trauma- and stress-related disorders and digital mental health, with a particular emphasis on cross-cultural perspectives. His work explores the long-term effects of trauma, including historical trauma, cultural scripts of trauma, and intergenerational transmission, as well as the development of culturally sensitive interventions. He conducts research across multiple countries in East Africa—including Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo—as well as in other Global South contexts such as Ukraine, Afghanistan, Georgia, and China. He was recently awarded the Ernst E. Boesch Prize Young Talent Award 2025, in recognition of his impactful contributions to cultural clinical psychology. In 2026, he received the Sparkling Research Award from the University of Zurich in recognition of his innovative work on developing digital, scalable, and culturally responsive mental health interventions.\nPost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) provides a dominant framework for understanding trauma; however, evidence suggests it may not fully capture the diversity of trauma-related experiences across cultural contexts. This study aims to explore both shared and culturally specific patterns of post-traumatic symptoms, conceptualized as Cultural Scripts of Trauma (CST) theory, and test empirically its assumptions. The second aim was to identify cultural values shaping post-traumatic symptoms, protective factors, trauma perceptions, and intervention pathways. The study employed focus groups and interviews with trauma survivors, trauma experts, and traditional and spiritual healers in Rwanda and Kenya, as well as with Ukrainian and Afghan immigrants residing in Switzerland. Data were analyzed using thematic and framework analysis supported by MAXQDA. Core PTSD symptoms except avoidance were found across all cultures but differed in salience. Eighteen trans-cultural symptoms such as body pains, bitterness, shock, mistrust, crying spells, unspeakable suffering, loss of vitality, and loss of dignity emerged beyond PTSD. The symptoms appeared as more dynamic and wave-like patterns rather than sequential, as suggested by CST theory. Cultural values such as masking emotions, community reputation, patriarchy, and religious conformity shaped symptom expression. Protective factors included individual, family and friends, societal, and spiritual. Trauma was commonly described through embodied metaphors such as “heart wound” and “burden in the heart.” Help-seeking involves both formal and informal care systems. Trauma is a culturally embedded yet globally shared experience. Findings extend PTSD frameworks and support partially CST theory, highlighting the need for culturally sensitive, integrative mental health care.\nThe Journal Club Session will aim to answer a set of questions including:\n\nHow do trans-cultural trauma symptoms compare to classical DSM/ICD PTSD criteria in terms of clinical salience and symptom dynamics?\n\n\nTo what extent does the qualitative evidence from diverse cultural groups (Rwanda, Kenya, Switzerland-based Afghan and Ukrainian immigrants) support or challenge the core tenets of Cultural Scripts of Trauma (CST) theory?\n\n\nIn what ways do specific cultural values (e.g., emotion masking, patriarchy, religious conformity) shape trauma-related help-seeking behavior and intervention pathways across formal and informal care systems?\n\nThis session will be co-moderated by Julia Noethiger, Specialist Psychotherapy & Co-Chair of RCRC Research Network at Swiss Red Cross and Dr. Yasin Duman, Research Specialist & Co-Chair of RCRC Research Network at the MHPSS Hub.\nMicrosoft Teams meeting: \nhttps://teams.microsoft.com/meet/323764101227597?p=i7mnpVPe2yyg71RJmy ( https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/323764101227597?p=i7mnpVPe2yyg71RJmy )\nMeeting ID: 323 764 101 227 597\nPasscode: hj6wW2BH\n
URL:https://mhpsshub.org/events/journal-club-session-beyond-ptsd-cultural-scripts-of-trauma-in-cross-cultural-study/
ORGANIZER;CN=Red Cross Red Crescent Research Network:MAILTO:
CATEGORIES:Webinar
LOCATION:Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://mhpsshub.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Celestin_M-002.jpg
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