TRAUMA, RESILIENCE AND GROWTH IN FILIPINO SEAFARER VICTIMS OF HOSTAGE TAKINGS IN THE GULF OF ADEN John Val B.

de la Cruz johnvaldelacruz@yahoo.com.ph The Psych Clinic; Central Colleges of the Philippines; Polytechnic University of the Philippines Abstract The current study is an in-depth exploration of Filipino seamen's felt experience of being taken hostage by Somali and Nigerian pirates made through reduction of dimensionality of metaphors, narratives and drawings. Study 1 had 37 hostage survivors who were clinically interviewed and accomplished 20 stories elicited from the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT). Independent ratings of survivors' metaphors (intraclass correlation, = 0.874; average lower-upper bound range, = 0.803 to = 0.919) were made by clinical practitioners across 60 affect traits in the Positive and Negative Affects Scale-Extended Form (PANAS-X). Multidimensional scaling revealed dimensions of affects that shed light to participants' (1) reaction to stress, (2) critical threats to physiological and psychological well-being, (3) resilience, and (4) growth following extreme stress. Study 2 utilized interpretative phenomenological analysis toward detailed examination of 10 Filipino seafarers' experience of hostage and how they made sense of it. Five superordinate themes emerged from the analysis labeled as: (1) dealing with trauma; (2) religiosity; (3) conception of hope; (4) the power of humor and kwentuhan (sharing of stories); and, (5) growth and forging ahead. Data in Studies 1 and 2 were consolidated to formulate an integrated dynamics of trauma, resilience, and posttraumatic growth in survivors of hostage takings in the seas. Conclusively, a perspective that encompasses both the positive and negative impact of trauma provides insight into a more complete and holistic understanding of what it means to be human. Implications on clinical assessment, therapy and research are discussed. The roles of family, government, manning agencies and maritime training institutions in sustaining security among Filipino seafarers at risk are emphasized.