Existential Trauma Lab Overview
The Existential Trauma (ET) Lab, housed within the University of Montana’s Department of Psychology, focuses on the application of existential theory to better understand potentially traumatic events and responses. Research projects emphasize expanded conceptualizations of trauma and traumatic stress responses. Although clinical conceptualizations of trauma, i.e., PTSD, are often included, we tend to focus on potentially traumatic events (PTEs) and responses that exist on the margins of diagnostic criteria. This involves the examination of, for example, collective and systemic traumas that may be impactful, not necessarily due to a literal threat to one's safety, but because of a threat to one's existential security and ability to maintain meaningful connections to others and the world. Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods research are welcome in the lab.
Explore this website to learn more about the researchers within the lab, our current projects and collaborations, and how we've communicated our research via publications and presentations.