Spiritually Sensitive Social Work with Victims of Natural Disasters and Terrorism

As a primary intervention, raising the topics of faith and religion with individuals traumatised by terrorism and/or natural disasters can be daunting for social workers, because victims often enter the helping relationship with feelings of helplessness, loss of personal control and of doubt about their relationships, environment, and their cultural and belief systems. Just as clients benefit from knowledge and awareness in the aftermath of a traumatic event, insights gleaned from traumatic experiences and from research can be useful for social workers grappling with the challenges associated with designing and deploying appropriate helping strategies with victims of disaster and terrorism. This article draws on extant literature and survey research, to explore how social workers might ethically assess clients' spiritual perspectives and incorporate helping activities that support clients' recovery, in the context of a spiritually sensitive helping relationship with victims of disaster and terrorism.