This book deals with psychological and community responses to cataclysmic events. It includes a typology of disasters, a newly proposed model of help-seeking in disaster, and an examination of legal and public policy implications of disaster from a psychological perspective. There are four sections, covering: theoretical foundations for a study of disaster response; types of disaster (natural disasters, airline disasters, technological failures); intervention and organizing disaster response; and related issues (legal, policy, evaluation, and research). This is the first such presentation of current thinking about the psychosocial effects and responses to disastrous events. The volume is intended for public safety and clinical psychologists, community mental health personnel, psychiatrists, libraries and graduates in psychology, nursing, social work and public health.