Psychosocial Recovery from Disasters: A Framework Informed by Evidence

Following the Canterbury earthquakes, The Joint Centre for Disaster Research (JCDR), a Massey University and Geological and Nuclear Science (GNS Science) collaboration, formed a Psychosocial Recovery Advisory Group to help support organisations involved in the recovery process. This advisory group reviews and summarises evidence-based research findings for those who make requests for such information. Extensive experience within the group adds a practitioner perspective to this advice. This article discusses the definition of psychosocial recovery used by the group to date, and the group’s view that psychosocial recovery involves easing psychological difficulties for individuals, families/whânau and communities, as well as building and bolstering social and psychological well-being. The authors draw on a brief discussion of this literature to make practical suggestions for psychosocial recovery.