Professor Steve Gold Leads in Trauma Psychology

CPS Professor Steven Gold is the 2009 president of the APA Division of Trauma Psychology, the newest division of the American Psychological Association. The new division has already exceeded the median among APA divisions in membership. Gold is also the inaugural editor of the Division’s professional journal, Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice and Policy.

As inaugural editor of the journal, Psychological Trauma: Research, Theory, Practice and Policy, Gold worked with journal associate editors Christine Courtois and Kathleen Kendall-Tackett to assemble an editorial board composed of nationally known leaders in the field of trauma psychology and oversaw the manuscript review process and compilation of the issues comprising the first volume of the journal.

Gold created a task force chaired by CPS alumna and Yale University faculty member Joan Cook (Ph.D., 1999) to identify mechanisms for making knowledge and skills in the field of trauma psychology more visible and accessible to college students, graduate students in mental health, professionals and the general public. Cook recently was awarded the 2009 NSU Distinguished Alumnus of the Year.

Gold established a Division of Trauma Psychology Fundraising Committee chaired by CPS graduate and former chair of the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS) Rob Rella (Ph.D., 1994). He has promoted collaborative efforts between the Division of Trauma Psychology and other divisions of APA with common interests including the Division of Psychotherapy; Division of Counseling Psychology; Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict and Violence; Society for the Psychology of Women; Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues; and the Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual and Transgender Issues.

In 2004 Gold was president of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. He also was founding co-editor, with CPS faculty member Jan Faust, of the Journal of Trauma Practice and was guest editor of a special issue of the APA journal Psychotherapy:Theory, Research, Practice, Training about trauma-related disorders. Gold authored the book Not Trauma Alone: Therapy for Child Abuse Survivors in Family and Social Context, and co-edited the volumes Trauma Practice in the Wake of September 11, 2001, and Trauma and Serious Mental Illness. He serves as a board member of the Sidran Institute for Traumatic Stress Education & Advocacy and is on the advisory board of the Leadership Council on Child Abuse & Interpersonal Violence.

At NSU, Gold directs the the Trauma Resolution and Integration Program (TRIP), a clinic for adults who have been exposed to a traumatic situation and are currently experiencing problems in functioning as a result of the traumatic experience. Such traumatic experiences include childhood abuse, rape, physical assault, or a life threatening accident or injury which is creating ongoing distress. Trauma-related distress can often interfere with day to day functioning and maintaining satisfactory interpersonal relationships. Gold’s clinic also treats adults with dissociative experiences that are disturbing to them and/or which are interfering with their ability to function effectively. Dissociative experiences are a common result of traumatic experiences, but can also arise for other reasons. Examples of dissociative experiences include “spaciness,” difficulty staying focused on the here and now, not feeling real, feeling as if one’s surrounding are not real, losing time or not being able to remember entire periods of one’s life, and radically shifting sense of self. A combination of individual psychotherapy and participation in coping skills training groups form the core of the treatment offered. TRIP also provides couples and family therapy to individuals with trauma-related and dissociative symptoms as needed.

For more information on clinic services at NSU, visit the web site at http://www.nova.edu/healthcare/psychology/trip.html
Or call for an appointment (954) NSU-CARE (678-2273)