Charles Figley
Encyclopedia
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, family studies, social work
Social work
Social Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...
, traumatology
Traumatology
Traumatology is the study of wounds and injuries caused by accidents or violence to a person, and the surgical therapy and repair of the damage. Traumatology is a branch of medicine. It is often considered a subset of surgery and in countries without the specialty of trauma surgery it is most...
, and mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
. He is the Paul Henry Kurzweg, MD Distinguished Chair in Disaster Mental Health and Graduate School of Social Work Professor at Tulane University (formerly a distinguished professor at Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
where he was the Traumatology Institute Director). He is a full professor at the Florida State University College of Social Work. Figley is an American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
, a Fulbright fellow, and holds seven other fellowships.
Dr. Figley is a psychologist, family therapist, and Professor in the School of Social Work at Tulane University (since 2009). He is formerly Professor of Family Therapy and Psychology at Purdue University (1974–1989). Professor Figley received both of his graduate degrees from the Pennsylvania State University and his undergraduate degree from the University of Hawaii, all in the area of human development.
Figley has two daughters, Jessica and Laura. He is married to Kathleen ("Kat") Regan Figley.
Traumatology work
Figley is the Director of the Tulane University (formerly of Florida State University) Traumatology Institute. On behalf of the institution, he is editor in chief for Traumatology, the field's independent, peer-reviewed, scientific/medical journal.Traumatology journal
Figley is the editor in chiefEditor in chief
An editor-in-chief is a publication's primary editor, having final responsibility for the operations and policies. Additionally, the editor-in-chief is held accountable for delegating tasks to staff members as well as keeping up with the time it takes them to complete their task...
of Traumatology, an international peer-reviewed journal
Academic journal
An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...
of Traumatology. In 2006, ownership of the journal was transferred to Sage Publications, although it continues to serve as the journal of the Green Cross Academy of Traumatology.
Under Figley's direction, the journal highlights in its articles the Green Cross as a deployment entity, as well as the certifications sanctioned by the Academy. Recent articles have included certification
Certification
Certification refers to the confirmation of certain characteristics of an object, person, or organization. This confirmation is often, but not always, provided by some form of external review, education, assessment, or audit...
reviews in Field Traumatology
Traumatology
Traumatology is the study of wounds and injuries caused by accidents or violence to a person, and the surgical therapy and repair of the damage. Traumatology is a branch of medicine. It is often considered a subset of surgery and in countries without the specialty of trauma surgery it is most...
, Certified Traumatologist training, Certified Compassion Fatigue Educator training, and Certified Compassion Fatigue Therapist training. Recent topics covered by the journal include clinical traumatology services; trauma
Psychological trauma
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event...
-informed, culturally competent assessment and treatment of individuals, families, groups and communities exposed to traumatic events; assessment and treatment of service providers and volunteers traumatized by their work with the traumatized; and psychological first aid and other emergency mental health services.
Green Cross
Figley is the founder and immediate past president of the Green Cross Academy of TraumatologyTraumatology
Traumatology is the study of wounds and injuries caused by accidents or violence to a person, and the surgical therapy and repair of the damage. Traumatology is a branch of medicine. It is often considered a subset of surgery and in countries without the specialty of trauma surgery it is most...
. The current President is Mary Schoenfeldt. Kathleen Regan Figley served as the CEO 2001-2006. Green Cross provided traumatology services in New York City after the September 11 World Trade Center attack, and in Sri Lanka after the December 2004 tsunami. In April 2007, Figley coordinated with the Green Cross the organization's emergency mental health service and counselling response to the Virginia Tech massacre
Virginia Tech massacre
The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting that took place on April 16, 2007, on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. In two separate attacks, approximately two hours apart, the perpetrator, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people...
.
Veterans service work
Figley is a founding member of both the national and Florida State UniversityFlorida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
chapters of the Collegiate Veterans Association. Figley currently serves as the faculty advisor for the FSU Alpha chapter of the CVA.
In 2007, Figley hosted the 2nd Annual Combat Stress Symposium, a peer-reviewed educational symposium
Symposium
In ancient Greece, the symposium was a drinking party. Literary works that describe or take place at a symposium include two Socratic dialogues, Plato's Symposium and Xenophon's Symposium, as well as a number of Greek poems such as the elegies of Theognis of Megara...
studying the effects of combat stress
Combat Stress
Combat Stress is a UK charity offering residential treatment to ex-servicemen and women suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental health issues....
on the U.S. military. Editorial board and keynote speakers included Figley, William Nash
William Nash
William Nash VC born in Newcastle, County Limerick he was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:He was a 33 year old corporal in the 2nd Battalion, The...
, M.D., MC, USN (United States Marine Corps), Zahava Solomon, PhD, MSW (Tel-Aviv University), Albert "Skip" Rizzo, Ph.D. (University of Southern California), and Ken Graap (Virtually Better of Decatur, Georgia). Panelists included Martell Teasley , Ph.D. (Florida State University); Warren R. "Rocky" McPherson (Former Executive Director of the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs
Florida Department of Veterans Affairs
The Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs is a government agency of the state of Florida under the authority of the Governor of Florida charged with helping veterans and their families to receive all benefits they are legally entitled to....
); Shad Meshad, LCSW (National Veterans Foundation); Nancy Clayton, M.D. (former Navy psychiatrist treating combat Marines); Raymond Scurfield, DSW (University of Southern Mississippi); CAPT Bob Koffman, MC, USN (Navy Bureau of Medicine); Tom Gaskin, Ph.D., (US Marine Corps).
Curriculum Vitae
Unabridged Vita as of 18 March 2007.Awards and honors
- The International Society for Traumatic Stress StudiesInternational Society for Traumatic Stress StudiesInternational Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, , was established on March 2, 1985 in Washington, D.C. for professionals to share information about the effects of trauma...
awarded him their Pioneer Award, which recognizes traumatologists whose lifetime achievement substantially advanced the field. In 1996, he was named Professor of the Year by the FSU School of Social Work student body. In 1997, the American Psychological Association named Professor Figley "Family Psychologist of the Year".
- In 2000 Figley was presented with Florida State University President's 2000 Continuing Education Award, Florida Association for Marriage and Family Therapy's 2000 Community Service Award and National Organization for Victim's Assistance (NOVA's) highest honor to a researcher, the Shaffer Research Award.
- In 2001 Figley and Kathleen Regan Figley were co-recipients of the Distinguished Service to Families Award from the National Council on Family Relations for their work after September 11.
- Figley is a fellow of the American Psychological AssociationAmerican Psychological AssociationThe American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
, the American Psychological Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Psychology, the American Association for Marriage and Family TherapyAmerican Association for Marriage and Family TherapyThe American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy is the professional association for the field of marriage and family therapy representing more than 25,000 marriage and family therapists throughout the United States, Canada, and abroad....
, the American Orthopsychiatric Association, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.
- Figley has received lectureships throughout the world, including EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, and the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
- He is the recipient of numerous lectureships throughout the world including Northern Ireland , South Africa , England, Australia, Canada, and universities through the US. He was awarded a senior Fulbright Research Fellowship to conduct research in Kuwait in 2004, when he was also named lifetime Alumni Fellow by the Penn State University, the highest honor to its graduates.
Forewords and Editorials
Since 2000, Figley has published over 35 forewords and editorials. The list is on Figley's publications page.Books
Figley has published 19 books in the field of traumatology, combat stress, and trauma prevention and treatment. He has four books in progress.- Figley, C. R. & Nash, W. P. (Eds.) (2007). Combat Stress Injury Theory, Research, and Management. New York: Routledge.
- Figley, C. R. & Roop, R. (2006) Compassion Fatigue in the Animal Care Community. Washington, DC: Humane Society Press.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (2006). Mapping the Wake of Trauma: Autobiographical Essays by the Pioneers of Trauma Research. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. NY: Routledge.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (2002). Brief Treatments for the Traumatized: Special Project of the Green Cross Foundation. West Port, Connecticut.
- Figley, C. R. (2002). Treating Compassion Fatigue. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner-Rutledge. Review in Journal of Trauma Practice.
- Figley, C. R. (1998). The Traumatology of Grieving. Philadelphia: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R., Bride, B., and Mazza, N. (Eds.) (1997). Death and Trauma. London: Taylor & Francis.
- Figley, C. R. (1997). Burnout in Families: The Systemic Costs of Caring. Boca Raton: CRC Press.
- Figley, C.R. (Ed.) (1995). Compassion Fatigue: Secondary Traumatic Stress Disorders from Treating the Traumatized. New York: Brunner/Mazel. (Review).
- Kleber, R., Figley, C. R., & Gersons, B. (Eds.) (1995). Beyond Trauma: Cultural and Societal Dynamics. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Plenum Press.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (1989). Treating Stress in Families. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R. (1989). Helping Traumatized Families. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (1986). Trauma and its Wake, Volume II: Traumatic Stress Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (1985). Trauma and its Wake: The Study and Treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (1985). Computers and Family Therapy. New York: Haworth Press.
- McCubbin, H. I. & Figley, C. R. (Eds.) (1983). Stress and the Family, Volume I: Coping with Normative Transitions. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R. Figley, C. R. & McCubbin, H. I. (Eds.) (1983). Stress and the Family, Volume II: Coping with Catastrophe. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
- Figley, C. R. & Leventman, S. (Eds.) (1980). Strangers at Home: Vietnam Veterans since the War. New York: Praeger. (Co-winner, 1980 Waterman Award by the Society for the Study of Social Issues). Review by Washington Post.
- Figley, C. R. (Ed.) (1978). Stress Disorders among Vietnam Veterans: Theory, Research, and Treatment. In the Psychosocial Stress Book Series. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
He has edited the book series:
- The Routledge (formerly Brunner/Mazel) Psychosocial Stress Book Series (1978–present)
- The Taylor & Francis Series in Trauma and Loss (1996–2002) Co-Edited with Therese Rando, Ph.D.
- The CRC Press Innovations in Psychology Book Series (1998–2002)
- The American Psychological Association Books Series in Stress and Trauma (2001–2002)
Chapters
- Figley, C. R. & Nash, W. P. (2007). Introduction: For those who bear the battle. In C. R. Figley & W. P. Nash (Eds.) Combat Stress Injury Theory, Research, and Management, pp 1–10. New York: Routledge Psychosocial stress Book Series.
- Figley, C. R. (2006). From Veterans of War to Veterans of Terrorism: My Maps of Trauma. In C. R. Figley (Ed.). In Mapping Trauma and its Wake: Autobiographic Essays by Pioneer Trauma Scholars, pp 47–60. NY: Routledge.
- Figley, C. R. and Barnes, M. (2005). External Trauma and Families. In P. C. McKenry, P. C. and S. J. Price (Eds.). Families and Change, 3rd Edition. Los Angeles: Sage Publishers.
- Barnes, M. and Figley, C. R. (2005) Family Therapy: Working with Traumatized Families. In J. Lebow (ed.). Handbook of Clinical Family Therapy. NY: John Wiley & Sons.
- Figley, C. R. (2002). Theory-Informed Brief Treatments. In C. R. Figley (Ed.), Brief Treatments for the Traumatized: A Project of the Green Cross Foundation. Westport, Connecticut.
- Figley, C. R., Figley, K. R., & Norman, J. (2002). Tuesday Morning September 11, 2001: The Green Cross Projects’ Role as a Case Study in Community-Based Traumatology Services. In S. N. Gold & J. Faust (Eds), Trauma Practice in the Wake of September 11, 2001, pp13–36, NY: Haworth Maltreatment & Trauma Press.
- Figley, C. R. (2002). Introduction. In C. R. Figley (Ed.), Treating Compassion Fatigue. New York: Brunner/Rutledge.
- Figley, C. R. (1999). Police Compassion Fatigue (PCF): Theory, Research, Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention. In J. Violenti (Ed.), Police Trauma: Psychological Aftermath of Civilian Combat. Charles C. Thomas Publishing, Springfield, Illinois.
- Figley, C. R. (1996). For those who bore the battle: The requirements of quality veteran family services. In D. Rhoades, M. Weinstein, and M. Levec (Eds.) The National Class Assistance Program: The Legacy of Vietnam for Veteran Families. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.
Peer-reviewed editorial positions
- TraumatologyTraumatologyTraumatology is the study of wounds and injuries caused by accidents or violence to a person, and the surgical therapy and repair of the damage. Traumatology is a branch of medicine. It is often considered a subset of surgery and in countries without the specialty of trauma surgery it is most...
(Journal) (1995–present), the International Journal of the Green Cross - The Journal of Traumatic Stress (1987–1992), the official Journal of the International Society for Traumatic Stress StudiesInternational Society for Traumatic Stress StudiesInternational Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, , was established on March 2, 1985 in Washington, D.C. for professionals to share information about the effects of trauma...
- Journal of Family Psychotherapy (1985–1990) current known as the Journal of Family Psychotherapy
Reviews in refereed journals since 1998
- Figley, C. R. (in press). Review of Webb, N. B. (Ed.) Mass Trauma and Violence: Helping Families and Children Cope. (New York: Guilford), Journal of Trauma Psychology.
- Figley, C. R. (2004). Review of J. P. Wilson , M. J. Friedman, and J. D. Lindy (Eds.) Treating Psychological Trauma and PTSD ( New York : Guilford , 2001), Journal of Trauma Practice, 3:3, 87-91.
- Figley, C. R. (2003). Review of Scott O. Lilienfeld, Steven Jay Lynn, and Jeffrey M. Lohr (Eds.) Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology (New York: Guilford, 2002), Journal of Trauma Practice, 2:4, 234-237.
- Figley, C. R. (2002). Review of Effective Treatments of PTSD, E. Foa, T. Keane, & M. Friedman (Eds.), New York: Guilford, 2000. Journal of Trauma Practice, 1:2, 95-97.
- Figley, C. R. (2001). Review of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders: Concepts and Therapy by William Yule. Traumatology, 8:1, 32-34.
- Figley, C. R. (2000). Review of Trauma: A Genealogy by Ruth Leys, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Traumatology, 6:2, 139-143.
- Figley, C. R. (2000) Review of Two Minds: The Revolutionary Science of Dual-Brain Psychology by Frederic Schiffer, New York: Free Press, 1998. Traumatology, 6:1, 61-63.
- Figley, C. R. (1998). Review of John P. Wilson and Terrence M. Keane (Eds.), Assessing psychological trauma and PTSD. New York: Guilford Press, 1997. Contemporary Psychology (April), 27:2, 128-130.
Non-refereed publications since 1993
Figley has published over 18 non-refereed publications since 1993. The list is at publications page.