Traumatic events, such as natural disasters, epidemics, war, terrorist attacks, and migration, are among the most important problems of the century, causing issues not only at the individual level but also at the social level by affecting a large number of people. Economic problems, political turmoil, disruption in the flow of social life, damage to health institutions and social resources, and the deterioration of physical and psychological health are problems that can be experienced after mass traumas. In addition to these; violence, harassment, and abuse, traffic accidents, unexpected deaths, or losses related to illnesses can have an impact that exceeds the coping skills of individuals. Traumatic experiences may cause not only Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder but also depression, focusing difficulties, sleep disturbance, social isolation, suicide, alcohol, and substance abuse. The long-term effects of all these negative experiences, such as predisposing to psychological disorders, causing impairment in interpersonal relationships and functionality, constitute a focus of interest for research in this field.

Within the scope of this program, it is aimed to conduct research on the relationship between traumatic experiences and psychopathology and the neurobiological reflections of traumatic experience, to develop, implement, investigate the effectiveness of, and monitor intervention models for the short and long-term effects of traumatic experiences.

The fields of study aimed in this direction are as follows:

Determine the risk factors and protective factors that play a role in the development of psychopathology after traumatic events, developing preventive interventions.
Establishment of a 'Disaster Psychosocial Support Programme' to be activated in disaster situations.
Develop a self-help therapy program for disadvantaged groups (victims of sexual trauma, members of security forces, soldiers, etc.) who are less likely to apply to psychotherapy due to factors such as stigma, anxiety, or shame.
Development and implementation of a program for coping with secondary traumatization in mental health workers serving trauma victims.
Develop a self-help program to protect psychological well-being to prevent secondary traumatization in emergency medicine physicians, 112 workers, and volunteers who provide emergency health services to traumatized individuals.
Model the relationship between exposure to traumatic life events and psychotic experiences, developing protective/treatment interventions based on factors predicting psychopathology.