Communication Studies Expository Piece Outline

Introduction
 Theme: Trauma

 Topic Question: “What are the effects of early childhood trauma on young
adults?”

 The definitions of the variables early childhood, trauma, childhood trauma,

young adults, and Caribbean are specified by the researcher to allow the reader
to know what the words mean in the context the researcher is using.

 The background of the problem is stated; In Caribbean homes we see more

young girls and boys being assaulted by relatives and close family friends.
This results in the development of social and psychological problems as the
sense of security of these children is weakened/destroyed. Individuals that
suffer from early childhood trauma are more likely to have depression, PTSD,
alexithymia, cancer and attachment issues.

 The reasons for which the researcher chose this theme and topic are that she is
interested in knowing how experiencing trauma from a young age affects the
person they are in the future; as well as she wants to know how to deal with
persons who have suffered trauma if she encounters one in her desired line of
work.

 The three sources are stated show that there are many effects of childhood
trauma on young adults. The articles show three differing aspects on which
trauma has an effect, they are: the cognitive development/mental health of the
victims; the physical health of the victim and the emotional health of the
victim.

Body Paragraph 1
1) The researcher found three articles, namely;
a) “Association of childhood trauma with cognitive function in healthy adults: pilot
study,” written by a group of medical personnel, Matthias Majer (from the department
of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences), Urs M Nater (from the department of
Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences), Jin-Mann S Lin (from the Chronic Viral
Diseases Branch), Lucile Capuron (From the Laboratory of Psychoneuroimmunology,
Nutrition and Genetics) and William C Reeves (Chronic Viral Diseases Branch). This
article focuses on the cognitive effect that trauma has on young children’s
development, it explains how the trauma the small hippocampus volume of the child
due to trauma, causes cognitive impairment and memory loss.
 b) “4 Ways Childhood Trauma Impacts on Young Adults Thriving,” written by
personnel at Newport Institute. This institute is a centre for helping to heal and
transform the lives of individuals who struggle with differing health issues. The
articles focuses on the effects that trauma has on a child but mostly focuses on the
physical aspect of the effects. The article lists chronic illnesses such as cancer,
asthma, diabetes and stroke.

c) “Early Childhood Trauma,” written by personnel at The National Child Traumatic

Stress Network (NCTSN), an institute that deals with victims who have been through
traumatic experiences and talks about how the victims have a tendency of blaming
themselves for what happened. It goes on to talk about how trauma is responsible for
a reduced size of the brain cortex, which is responsible for complex functions, in
victims and how this change may affect the ability of the individual to regulate their
emotions.

2) All information gathered agrees that early childhood trauma has effects on young adults,
however, each source shows a different aspect of a victim’s life that it affects.

3) Some challenges experienced by the researcher are:

a) Stress
b) Lack of information
c) No access to some vital information because it is blocked unless a fee is paid.
d) Writer’s block, the researcher sometimes lacked a good way of expressing her
thoughts in the right way
e) Lack of motivation to continue
f) Poor time management

Body Paragraph 2
1. Focus on the first article, “Association of childhood trauma with cognitive function in
healthy adults: pilot study.”
2. The writers of this article are qualified to give out information on this topic as they are
certified personnel in the field of mental/ brain health.
3. This source is trustworthy as there are many other studies that express the same views
on the effects that trauma has on the cognitive development of victims.
4. The information collected is up to date as it was published in the year 2010, and
though this is outside the 10 year marker, this article is a reoccurring reference for
newer articles.
5. The information provided is factual and free of bias as the study was done, presented
and spoke about from a medical point of view, medical issues are purely based on
facts and not opinions. As such the information provided is relevant to the claim
made.
6. The information was published as an online article using written communication.
Body Paragraph 3
1. Focus on the second article, “4 Ways Childhood Trauma Impacts on Young Adults
Thriving.”
2. The writer(s) of this article are personnel from the Newport Institute, an organization
that helps victims of early childhood trauma heal and transform their lives. They also
used information from articles and journals written by medical personnel to provide
more information and prove the truthfulness of their statements.
3. This source is trustworthy as there are many other studies that express similar views
on the effects that trauma has on the physical well-being of victims.
4. This information is up to date as it was published in the year 2022, which is well
within the currency marker.
5. The information provided is factual and free of bias, as the article was written by
people who are experts in this field, and they made references to other articles that
spoke about the same matter to fact-check themselves. The information provided is
relevant for proving the credibility if what is said by the writer(s) in the article.
6. The information was published as an online article using written communication.

Body Paragraph 4

1. Focus on the third article, “Early Childhood Trauma.”

2. The writer(s) of this article are from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
(NCTSN), an institute that works with children who have suffered abuse or been
through traumatic events.
3. This source is credible as there are many other sources that share similar views on the
topic as well as the institute collaborates with the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, which is created to protect the health of individuals and providing
essential human services.
4. This information is up to date as it was published in the year 2019, which within the
currency marker.
5. This information is factual and free from bias as it was written by person who were
giving a general and medical view of the issue as well as they collaborated with other
institutes that deal with the victims of traumatic events. The information provided is
relevant for proving and supporting the claims made by the institute.
6. The information was published as an online article using written communication.

Conclusion
1. “The initial trauma of a young child may go underground, but it will return to haunt
us.”
2. Brief summary of the effects of early childhood trauma on young adults, ie, the
emotional, mental and physical effects.
3. Determine if the question of the IA was answered.
4. State what the researcher learned.