The New York Times best seller The Body Keeps the Score, authored by Bessel van der Kolk, has been translated into 43 languages and maintained a presence on bestseller lists for hundreds of weeks. Since the 1970s, this Dutch-American psychiatrist has focused his research on the nature of post-traumatic stress, influencing clinical approaches to developmental psychopathology in both the United States and abroad.
Academic and Medical Training
Born in 1943 in The Hague, van der Kolk pursued his undergraduate studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he focused on a pre-medical curriculum and a political science major. In 1970, he obtained his M.D. from the Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago. He subsequently completed his psychiatric residency at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Harvard Medical School, finishing that program in 1974.
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Van der Kolk began his professional career as the director of Boston State Hospital and later served as a staff psychiatrist at the Boston Veterans Administration Outpatient Clinic. His interest in traumatic stress intensified in 1978 while working with Vietnam War veterans. He participated in the development of the 1980 and 1994 editions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and led early investigations into using fluoxetine and sertraline to treat PTSD.
Developmental Trauma and Institutional Work
In 1982, he established the Trauma Center in Brookline, Massachusetts. During the 1990s, he participated in the first neuroimaging studies concerning PTSD and dissociative identity disorder. In 1999, he initiated the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, which eventually comprised 150 sites. Through this organization, he and his colleagues studied over 20,000 children to define Developmental Trauma Disorder, a condition not yet officially recognized within the DSM. He also served as the president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.
Critical Reception and Controversy
While van der Kolk has been recognized for his contributions to trauma studies, including his inclusion in Time's 2024 list of influential people in health, his work has faced significant academic scrutiny. Critics, including those published in the Skeptical Inquirer and Research on Social Work Practice, have challenged his reliance on concepts such as mirror neurons and his advocacy for recovered memory therapy. Some clinicians have characterized his promotion of specific trauma interventions as lacking an evidence-based foundation.
Fast facts
- Born: 1943, The Hague
- Education: University of Hawaiʻi System; Pritzker School of Medicine
- Primary Field: Psychiatry
- Significant Publication: The Body Keeps the Score (2014)
- Professional Roles: Psychiatrist, university teacher, researcher
- Academic Affiliations: Boston University, Harvard Medical School
Questions readers ask
What is Developmental Trauma Disorder?
It is a term coined by van der Kolk to describe a complex range of biological and psychological reactions to trauma throughout human development, though it is not currently accepted in the DSM.
Why has his work been criticized by other scientists?
Critics argue that his writings promote pseudoscientific claims and ineffective therapies, misrepresenting the established scientific knowledge base regarding PTSD treatment.
Achievements
- Held posts at Boston University, Boston State Hospital and Harvard Medical School
- Fields: psychiatry and post-traumatic stress disorder
