Disaster mental health research : past, present, and future

Insights about disasters inevitably arise from history, social science, and the vast range of attempts to understand the nature of human behavior in such settings. Insights relevant to mental health have been developed more recently, in part because of the evolving nature of both the mental health and disaster fields. In reviewing the development of mental health interest in and research about disasters, there are many seminal studies and publications, building progressively in their contributions to the science of this field. It is impossible here to acknowledge each of these individual projects. Instead, the challenge lies in identifying the core themes of this field, their scientific evolution, their application to the reality of disaster contexts, and what may be required for the future. The themes that will be considered in this chapter have influenced research and practice over the past four to five decades, particularly in recent times. Nevertheless, they require critical examination and development, as do the research methodologies applied, if we are to meet the challenges of the future.