Triguna Personality and Vicarious Traumatization: A Comparative Study Between Trainee Therapists and Doctoral Scholars

Abstract

Predominantly, investigations into personality predictors of vicarious traumatization have centered on Western personality paradigms, particularly the Big Five personality traits, thereby overlooking indigenous frameworks. To address this gap, the present study examined the relationship between Triguna personality and vicarious traumatization among trainee therapists and doctoral scholars in India. Employing a cross-sectional research design, the study compared these two groups (30 scholars and 30 trainees) using the Triguna and the Vicarious trauma scale. The results indicated no significant difference between scholars and trainees in levels of vicarious traumatization and Triguna traits. Furthermore, tamas and rajas guna correlated moderately with vicarious traumatization, and the findings were statistically significant for trainee therapists. A weak negative correlation was reported between sattva guna and vicarious traumatization for both groups. These findings underscore the need for clinical awareness about susceptibility to vicarious traumatization and also highlight the significant role of the indigenous personality framework in understanding psychological resilience and vulnerability in trauma work.