The aftermath of a mass shooting in America

Last week America was shocked by two major mass shooting events in a week. Almost 20 people were killed and so many more will suffer the short- and long-term effects of these tragic and violent events.

According to recent media reports, though the election and a full year of COVID-19 dominated news coverage, 2020 was one of the deadliest years for gun violence in decades.

Until two lethal rampages this month, mass shootings had largely been absent from headlines during the coronavirus pandemic. But people were still dying — at a record rate.

In 2020, gun violence killed nearly 20,000 Americans, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive, more than any other year in at least two decades. An additional 24,000 people died by suicide with a gun.

The vast majority of these tragedies happen far from the glare of the national spotlight, unfolding instead in homes or on city streets and — like the Covid-19 crisis — disproportionately affecting communities of color. March 23, Washington Post

And as America carries on and moves forward, the survivors, witnesses and families of those killed will be adapting to a new life and a multitude of physical and psychological challenges. If you’re a reporter looking to cover the issues survivors of mass-shooting events will experience, then let us help.

Dr. Laura C. Wilson is a clinical psychologist whose expertise focuses on post-trauma functioning, particularly in survivors of sexual violence or mass trauma (e.g., terrorism, mass shootings, combat).

Her research interests extend to predictors of violence and aggression, including psychophysiological and personality factors, as well as indicators of PTSD following mass trauma, long-term functioning among first responders, outcomes among survivors of sexual violence, and the influence of media on mental illness stigma.

Dr. Wilson is available to speak with media – simply click on her icon to arrange an interview today.