What term is used to describe the impact of exposure to another person's traumatic experience?

The term used to describe the impact of exposure to another person's traumatic experience is vicarious trauma. This phenomenon occurs when an individual witnesses or hears about the trauma experienced by someone else, leading to emotional and psychological effects similar to those experienced by the victim.

Vicarious trauma can manifest in various ways, including changes in one’s worldview, feelings of helplessness, and difficulty in managing one’s own emotional responses. It is important to understand this concept, especially in fields such as law enforcement, healthcare, and mental health services, where professionals often encounter the traumatic experiences of others as part of their work.

In contrast, vice typically refers to immoral or wicked behavior, and does not relate to trauma. Victimization describes the process or act of being harmed or made to suffer, which is more focused on the person directly affected by the trauma rather than someone who experiences trauma vicariously. A trauma response may refer to the ways in which individuals react to their own trauma, but does not specifically address the impact of exposures to someone else's traumatic experience. Thus, vicarious trauma is the most accurate term for the described situation.