The Nation’s Cold Becomes the Black Community’s Flu: A Phenomenological Study of Vicarious Traumatization Amongst Black Clergy Affected by Community Violence

Clergy are often the frontline community workers when it comes to mental health crises and trauma, especially those working within the Black communities. Black clergy frequently serve in environments with high community violence exposure and are usually subject to vicarious traumatization due to repetitive exposure to trauma narratives during their ministry work. However, studies on vicarious trauma have been geared more towards clinical mental health workers, while studies on clergy have focused more on professional burnout. The purpose of this phenomenological study is to understand the experience of vicarious traumatization of Black clergy who serve congregations that are exposed to community violence. The theory guiding this study is the Constructivist Self-Development Theory developed by I. Lisa McCann & Laurie A. Pearlman as it lays the foundation for the concept of vicarious traumatization in working with individuals who have been traumatized. This research collected the narratives of Black clergy who work with congregations that have exposure to community violence to examine how exposure to trauma material impacts their worldview, sense of self, and spiritual ideologies.