Synthesizing Practice-Based Evidence from Trauma Research: A Dual-Case Study of Review Impact and Epistemic Transformation

• In Event: Promoting Trauma-Informed Education and Youth Well-Being

Abstract

This study presents a case synthesis of two influential trauma-informed education reviews to examine how the field of education conceptualizes and mobilizes trauma-informed practices (TIP). Using South et al.’s (2024) practice-based evidence framework, we analyze each review’s conceptual contributions and citation uptake. Layering Wieser’s (2016) framework of knowledge transformation with the CARS (Critical, Agentic, Relational, Strengths-based) framework, we assess how teacher knowledge may be shaped across epistemological domains. Findings reveal persistent gaps: limited integration of racialized trauma, decontextualized citation patterns, and weak theorization of healing. We argue for TIP frameworks that confront trauma as racialized and relational, offering a roadmap for critically reflexive, justice-oriented teacher development grounded in structural and embodied understandings of harm.

Authors

• Adam J. Alvarez, Texas A&M University

• M. Shelley Thomas, University of Louisville

• Shantel Crosby, University of Louisville