Introduction to Crisis and Trauma Counseling

This introductory text integrates evidence-based models and best practices with relational-cultural theory, which is responsive to the many forms of traumatic stress and tragedies that clients experience. It is a unique contribution that emphasizes the power of the connections counselors form with clients and communities in crisis and the means by which counselors can intervene, inspire growth, and promote healing during times of tragedy and loss.

Readers will gain vital skills as they learn real-life approaches to crisis work with diverse populations in a variety of settings, including individuals, families, communities, students, military personnel, violence survivors, and clients who are suicidal. The authors provide strength-based, trauma-informed applications of cognitive behavioral therapy, behavioral therapy, neurofeedback, mindfulness, and creative practices. In addition, each chapter contains compelling case examples, multiple-choice and essay questions, and key topic discussion prompts to guide student learning and promote classroom discussion.

Thelma Duffey, PhD, is professor and chair in the Department of Counseling at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and is past president of the American Counseling Association (ACA). An ACA fellow, she is currently serving as ACA treasurer. Professor Duffey was the founding president of the Association for Creativity in Counseling (ACC), a division within the ACA, and she is editor for the Journal of Creativity in Mental Health. Professor Duffey has received numerous leadership and research awards from professional organizations, including the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, the ACA, the Texas Counseling Association, the Texas Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, and the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling. The ACC established an award in her name. Professor Duffey has more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and three edited and coedited books: Creative Interventions in Grief and Loss Therapy: When the Music Stops, a Dream Dies; A Counselor’s Guide to Working With Men; and Child and Adolescent Counseling Case Studies: Developmental, Systemic, Multicultural, and Relational Contexts. Her research interests include relational-cultural theory, developmental relational counseling, creativity in counseling, and grief and loss counseling. Professor Duffey provided support and consultation in Newtown, Connecticut, following the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School and co-led efforts to provide crisis and trauma services to Sutherland Springs and neighboring communities. Professor Duffey codirects the Academy for Crisis and Trauma Counseling within the Department of Counseling. During her tenure as ACA president, Professor Duffey led a national antibullying and interpersonal violence initiative, and she currently leads efforts within the UTSA Department of Counseling to support the works of the David’s Legacy Foundation.

Shane Haberstroh, EdD, is associate professor of counseling in the Department of Educational Psychology at Northern Arizona University (NAU). Before his appointment at NAU, he served as associate professor, assistant department chair, and doctoral program chair at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). His research focuses on technology in counseling; creativity in counseling; developmental relational counseling; and the losses and recovery processes related to addiction, crises, and traumatic events. Professor Haberstroh is associate editor for the Journal of Creativity in Mental Health and has more than 35 published journal articles and book chapters. He is coeditor of Child and Adolescent Counseling Case Studies: Developmental, Systemic, Multicultural, and Relational Contexts. Professor Haberstroh is past president of the Association for Creativity in Counseling (ACC) and serves as the ACC’s treasurer. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including several awards from the ACC and the AARC/CORE (Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling/Counseling Outcome Research and Evaluation) Outstanding Outcome Research Award. He served on the American Counseling Association (ACA) 20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling from 2005 to 2013 and served as the ACC’s representative to the ACA Governing Council from 2013 to 2019.