About this course

Learning Objectives

• Differentiate between everyday stress, small “t” trauma, and big “T” trauma as they relate to social and political unrest, and recognize how these experiences affect individuals and communities.
• Identify direct and indirect psychological impacts of sociopolitical unrest, including vicarious trauma, moral injury, tribalism, and collective stress responses.
• Apply trauma-informed, regulation-based strategies (e.g., Window of Tolerance, body-based reset rituals, perspective-taking) to promote stability, resilience, and compassion during periods of social and political turbulence.

Target Audience

Course Instructor(s)

• 

  Todd M. Frye, PhD, LCPC, LCMFT, NCC, SATP-S

  Professor, Associate Dean, School of Counselor Education, MidAmerica Nazarene University

  Dr. Todd Frye is a Professor of Counselor Education and Associate Dean in the School of Counselor Education at MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, Kansas. He holds a Ph.D. in Counselor Education and Counseling from Idaho State University, a Master of Education, and a Bachelor’s degree from Northwest Nazarene University, and is a licensed professional counselor and marriage & family therapist. At MNU, Dr. Frye provides leadership in counselor education, contributes to program development (including specialized training like sexual addictions treatment), and teaches graduate-level counseling courses. His professional interests include clinical practice, counselor training, trauma, relational issues, and supporting counselors in their ongoing growth. He has been a faculty member at MNU since 2007.

Disclosure

References

• Garcini, L. M., Domenech Rodríguez, M. M., Mercado, A., Silva, M., Cadenas, G., Galvan, T., & Paris, M. (2022). Anti-immigration policy and mental health: Risk of distress and trauma among Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients in the United States. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 15(7), 1067–1075. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0001228
• Cassidy, G. P., McQuaid, J., Heatherington, L., & Su, C. J. (2023). Asylee perspectives on psychotherapies for posttraumatic stress. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 36(2), 373–384. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.22917
• Mercado, A., Venta, A., Morales, F., Palomin, A., Garcini, L., Silva, M., & Domenech Rodríguez, M. (2024). Trauma in the American asylum process: Experiences of immigrant families under the Migrant Protection Protocols. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 16(Suppl 2), S379–S388. doi:10.1037/tra0001368
• Cadenas, G. A., Domenech Rodríguez, M. M., Garcini, L. M., Mendoza, J. G., Suro, B., Mercado, A., ... & Paris, M. (2025). Antiracist activism for immigrant rights and healthy coping: Initial evidence for a community‐based framework. American journal of community psychology, 75(3-4), 224-236. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12769
• McCann, I. L., & Pearlman, L. A. (1990). Vicarious traumatization: A framework for understanding the psychological effects of working with victims. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 3(1), 131–149.
• Siegel, D. J. (1999). The developing mind: How relationships and the brain interact to shape who we are. Guilford Press.
• Ogden, P., Minton, K., & Pain, C. (2006). Trauma and the body: A sensorimotor approach to psychotherapy. W. W. Norton.
• Neria, Y., & Sullivan, G. (Eds.). (2011). Trauma and disaster: Individual and community mental health interventions.Cambridge University Press.
• Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. G. Austin & S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47). Brooks/Cole.