A Social Stage Model of Collective Coping: The Loma Prieta Earthquake and The Persian Gulf War

Abstract

When individuals face an emotional upheaval, they naturally talk and think about it. If they are unable to talk with others but continue to think about the event, they are at greater risk for a variety of psychological and health problems. Drawing on survey data gathered from San Francisco residents after the Loma Prieta Earthquake and from Dallas residents during and after the Persian Gulf War, we found evidence to support a social stage model of coping. Immediately after an upheaval, individuals openly talk and think about the event for approximately two weeks. Following this emergency stage, individuals progress into an inhibition stage wherein they stop talking about the upheaval but continue thinking about it for approximately six weeks. Certain indicators of distress, such as hostility and dreaming, peak during the inhibition phase. After this time, people enter an adaptation phase wherein they neither talk nor think about the upheaval. Implications for theory and interventions for both broad‐scale collective upheavals as well as personal traumas are discussed.