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The Race-Based Traumatic Stress Theory

The race-based traumatic stress theory can be employed in explaining the trauma witnessed by non-white males after their negative encounters with media and law enforcement. The race-based traumatic stress theory proposed by Carter in 2007 holds that certain ethnic and racial minority individuals may witness racial discrimination as a psychological trauma considering that it may trigger a reaction comparable or similar to posttraumatic stress (Polanco-Roman, Danies & Anglin, 2016). Ethnic and racial minority adults who are subjected to racial discrimination, potentially as traumatic, may be susceptible or predisposed to dissociative symptoms (Roman et al., 2016). Dissociative symptoms involve reaction to posttraumatic stress, especially among ethnic and racial minority adults for whom ethnic and racial discrimination experiences are common (Roman et al. 2016). In relation to this, it can be noted that this reaction is often experienced by nonwhites following their encounter with law enforcements and media. Roman et al. (2016) emphasize the relevance of coping strategies for addressing racial discrimination in dealing with dissociative symptoms. Therefore, by drawing from the race-based traumatic stress theory, social workers can manage to employ various coping strategies employed in dealing with racial discrimination in assisting non-whites who are subjected to trauma caused by their encounters with law enforcements and media. Social workers can accomplish this goal by utilizing active strategies such as encouraging non-white victims of racial discrimination to talk to other people about their experience and engaging the victims in other activities. Roman et al. (2016) argue that active coping strategies are considered more effective than passing coping approaches such as keeping experienced related to racial discrimination to oneself and accepting racial discrimination as a life’s fact.