1) A few weeks after 9/11, a disaster mental health clinician believes she has a patient who is experiencing either "Acute Stress Disorder" or "Post-traumatic Stress Disorder". a. What criteria should the clinician use to determine which disorder the patient has (in other words, what are the diagnostic markers for each)? b. Which disorder do you believe the patient has? Note: You don't have to be a mental health clinician to answer here--your task here is to apply what you learned in the course--so no need to state that you aren't qualified to diagnose. You must select ONLY ONE diagnosis, either ASD or PTSD, to receive points for this question.
2) From what you have now learned about Terror Management Theory (TMT), what do you believe the officials (at every level) could have done differently to better manage the Katrina disaster had they understood TMT? Be specific here and cite your sources.
3) Describe the differences in the pharmacological (medication) approach to PTSD treatment and the cognitive-behavioral approach.
4) You have been tasked with developing a two-day workshop focusing on the psychology of disaster. The workshop is part of a larger several day conference. Other workshops occurring during the conference will cover disaster preparedness and planning, so those topics won't be part of your two days. Identify four CRITICAL topics that you would include during your workshop sessions. Critical means you consider a topic a very high priority, something that is absolutely essential for attendees to know about. Each session is to be an hour long. Below list the 4 topics you would include in the workshop and, for each one, explain why you selected it (Note: You must restrict your answer to only four topics-including more will void your answer)
5) Describe the primary psychological needs of children following a major disaster.
6) Use one of the theories discussed in the course to describe psychological risks faced by service providers (initial responders, EMTs, rescuers, firefighters, police, on-site mental health clinicians, etc.) in the event of a major disaster.
7) Which area of the study of the psychology of disaster do you think needs more attention these days in order to effectively deal with contemporary disasters? Why? NOTE: You must link your answers to course materials here, rather than just giving a brief statement of opinion.