Individuals are exposed to various difficulties and challenges daily, whether it be minor or significant life events. Bonanno & Mancini (2008) discuss that individuals are expected to experience one potentially traumatic event in their lifetime, however it is how an individual reacts to such events which determines whether trauma occurs as a result (Fletcher & Sarkar, 2013).
Resilience is described as the overcoming of adversity, whilst subtly changing, or dramatically transforming aspects of that adversity (Hart & Heaver, 2013). McGrath & Noble (2010) expands on this by describing that resilience is also coping with hardship, then being able to return to a state of well-being. Masten (2001) explains that resilience is the human capacity to be strengthened and transformed by life’s adversities and challenges, whilst exploring how resilience is a complex relationship of psychological inner strengths and environmental social supports.
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(2014) that many definitions neglect the complex nature of resilience. Determinants of resilience include factors such as biological, psychological, social and cultural that ultimately interact together, then generating a response to stressful experiences (Southwick et al., 2014). Taylor et al. (2011) also exploits resilience as only placing a plaster over the wound caused by macro-structural inequalities in power and resources. It would seem that resilience is often mistakenly assumed to be a trait of the individual, however research explores that resilience is the result of individuals interacting with their environments to promote well-being and protecting themselves against the overwhelming influence of risk factors (Kent et al.,