Altruism Born of Suffering: How Colombian Human Rights Activists Transform Pain Into Prosocial Action

379960
ndez-WolfeJournal of Humanistic Psychology

JHP51210.1177/0022167810379960Herná
Journal of Humanistic Psychology
Altruism Born of 51(2) 229–249

© The Author(s) 2011
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DOI: 10.1177/0022167810379960
Colombian Human http://jhp.sagepub.com
Rights Activists
Transform Pain Into
Prosocial Action
Pilar Hernández-Wolfe1
Abstract
This study examines the impetuses for altruistic behavior of Colombian human
rights activists, all of whom experienced politically based trauma. Thirty-five
human rights activists participated in individual interviews conducted between
1998 and 2009. Results of the analysis are illustrated in nine themes: affirmation
of self despite fear, indignation, a search for meaning, spirituality, justice to build
peace, leaving a legacy of peace and agency for the next generation, support by
others, and recognition and equity for ethnic minorities and for women. It is
the hope of the author that these results contribute to the examination of how
healing and altruism endure even in times of civil conflict and often as a result
of such times, all of which ultimately leads to the betterment of community life.
Keywords
altruism born of suffering, Colombia, human rights, resilience
International media frequently overemphasize news about drugs and delin-

quency in Colombia, all the while keeping silent about the persistent and hor-
rendous human rights violations that Colombians regularly endure. To a lesser
1
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
Corresponding Author:
Pilar Hernández-Wolfe, Johns Hopkins University, 2800 North Charles St., Baltimore, MD
21218, USA
Email: pilarhw@jhu.edu
Downloaded from jhp.sagepub.com at University of Ulster Library on April 24, 2015

230 Journal of Humanistic Psychology 51(2)
extent, but no less pernicious, Colombian media behave in a similar manner.

Historically, both have thrown into the background the doings of human rights
activists, especially the ways in which Colombian citizens care for others and
contribute to creating and sustaining communities of hope and resilience in the
midst of social upheaval.
As a feminist scholar and human rights activist, I have been involved in
developing educational and psychotherapeutic approaches to treating the
wounds of social trauma and fostering resilience. Over the years, I have been
a witness to and a participant in the ongoing development of prosocial actions
that strengthen community networks, which affirm human rights in Colombia.
I believe that one of my scholarly and social responsibilities is to make visi-
ble the ways in which human rights activists affirm life, peace, and commu-
nity by examining their altruistic behavior.
This qualitative study illustrates how Colombian human rights activists
who experienced violence before and during their initial years of advocating
for human rights made sense of adversity and took action to help others
through activism. It offers a description of their motivation for altruistic
behavior through a grounded theory approach. A literature review of altruism
born of suffering (ABS), resilience, and posttraumatic growth (PTG) is
offered. A brief description of the current human rights situation in Colombia
follows to contextualize the study’s findings.
Altruism Born of Suffering

ABS describes how individuals who have suffered may become motivated to
help others because of the experience of suffering (Staub, 2003). The develop-
ment of this motivation depends on experiences that transform the meaning
of past suffering and promote prosocial behaviors (Staub & Vollhardt, 2008).
According to Vollhardt (2009), “something about the experience of suffering—
either the situation itself, the psychological processes that accompany it, or
additional experiences that transform the meaning of suffering may give rise
to altruism and prosocial behavior” (p. 60). Research on prosocial behavior
rooted in positive experiences has shed light on processes leading to the motiva-
tion to help others (Batson, 1998). For example, Batson (2002) offers a com-
prehensive overview of the role of empathy as an affective source of altruism.
Others have highlighted contributions from developmental research, in which
the role of positive socialization is the area of focus (Staub, 2004, 2005).
The concept of ABS addresses the processes by which individuals move
from survivorship to activism in a quest to help others. Staub and Vollhardt’s
(2008) model offers an interpretive framework to explore altruism in the arena

Hernández-Wolfe 231
of human rights. The following story serves to illustrate how Transito, who
was victimized for reasons foreign to her and her community, transformed
her experiences and oriented her actions to help others:
Transito was an indigenous woman whose husband and son were

caused to disappear by the paramilitaries. Her family and others in the
community had been threatened and told to leave if they wanted to save
their lives. Their refusal to leave their lands resulted in physical, social,
and emotional loss, displacement, and trauma. She was forced to move
to a city in search for a livelihood, where she found that life was hard,
impersonal, and lonely. After many months of hardships and despera-
tion, she started to develop meaningful connections with members of
communities involved in human rights. At some point, she was able to
bring back into her life a legacy of healing and spiritual traditions that
helped her realize that this situation was actually an opportunity: she not
only found hope to survive but also managed to engage in caring for
others in a similar situation and commit to protecting her community’s
history, culture, and livelihood.
How did she make sense of her pain over time? How does she make sense
of her community’s history and their current situation? How did she make a
choice to commit to defending her community’s human rights? Who and what
helped in this process? How does she reconcile the taking of continuous risks
to herself for the sake of others?
In their conceptual model, Staub and Vollhardt (2008) explain how the
following components and their relationships lead to ABS: The experience
of victimization, when perpetrated intentionally by humans or unintention-
ally by natural events, may be processed in a way that facilitates changes in
the perception of vulnerability and mistrust to a more positive view of others
and the world. Channels for processing involve experiences that promote psy-
chological change such as (a) healing via personal work (i.e., therapy, alterna-
tive and indigenous ways of healing), finding truth and justice, and embarking
on a path to understand the roots of violence (e.g., learning the history of
European colonization and its impact in shaping the civil conflicts around the
world); (b) support from others before, during, and after victimization; and
(c) actions by oneself at the time and after victimization. These experiences
and their psychological processing may result in a stronger sense of self,
empathy, greater awareness of others’ suffering, and an increased sense of
responsibility to help others. Staub and Vollhardt (2008) “assume that the
greater the number and extensiveness of positive experiences before, at the

time of, and in the aftermath of victimization, the more likely it is that ABS
develops” (p. 272). They hypothesize that these psychological changes con-
comitantly occur with a positive, supportive environment and that they pave
the way for transforming suffering into a source of empathy and prosocial
action. The model does not favor the development of resilience and ABS at the
exclusion of pain and suffering because of victimization. It simply explains
how altruism can be an outcome of suffering.
The questions outlined above on Transito’s making sense of her pain over
time, and her choice to defend her community’s human rights, illustrate some
of the model components discussed by Staub and Vollhardt (2008). Transito
became a part of a net of human rights activists who provided physical and
emotional support. They also encouraged her to heal using indigenous means
involving shamanic rituals coherent with her world views. After finding the
bodies of her husband and son she was able to give closure to a journey of pain
and uncertainty. Her healing continued, and she was guided to accompany
other indigenous peoples and work for their human rights. This was a spiritual
journey for her.
It is important to note that in Latin America, during the 1980s, Ignacio
Martín-Baró (1981, 1985, 1986, 1987) had already contributed to a descrip-
tion of how positive consequences may evolve from politically based trauma.
He observed that in times of war, individuals and groups develop empathy
and solidarity for each other and those who have been victimized. Furthermore,
some people may develop a sense of mission to assist those in need and pre-
vent further suffering. These positive consequences strengthen the develop-
ment of hope.
According to Martín-Baró (1987), the social and psychological dynamics
of hope involve two components: understanding personal stories as a part of
the social matrix in which suffering is maintained and fostering the reconstruc-
tion of relationships by relying on the community’s capacity to heal. Hope is
reconstructed, whereas oppressive societal ideologies are deconstructed,
which makes for an avenue for change involving groups of people, as opposed
to solely individuals. Individuals and societies are mutually dependent reali-
ties that define each other. Altruistic behavior emerges, evolves, and is rein-
forced as individuals develop critical consciousness and construct nets of
community support.
Martín-Baró (1987, 1989) emphasized the need to identify and enhance the
strengths that have helped the oppressed populations of Latin America sur-
vive, confront, resist, and transform their lives. He speaks of virtues, such as
practical intelligence, exhibited by marginalized children in the cities; stub-
born resistance by Andean indigenous groups to affirm their cultural identity,

peasant solidarity in spite of displacement and popular religion; and a mean-

ingful world in the face of historical trauma.
Resilience
Masten and Powell (2003) indicate that resilience refers to an inference about
someone’s life based on a past or current adversity, and it describes a pattern
of positive adaptation to challenges. It “typically arises from the operation
of common human adaptational systems rather than from extraordinary pro-
cesses” (p. 15). Walsh (2003, 2007) developed a systemic framework based
on key family processes that may reduce vulnerability and foster healing and
empowerment. These processes include a family’s belief system (meaning-
making processes, positive outlook, transcendence, and spirituality), organi-
zational patterns (flexibility, connectedness, social, and economic resources),
and communication and problem solving (clarity, open emotional expres-
sion, and collaborative problem solving). This approach offers an expanded
vision “of what is possible through collaboration, not only to survive trauma
and loss but also to regain their spirit to thrive” (Walsh, 2007, p. 224). Walsh’s
model assists in explaining how experiences promoting psychological change
may potentially alter the meaning of suffering and foster ABS.
Vollhardt (2009) argues that a resilience framework is limited in its capacity
to explain altruism resulting from suffering and that there is a need to exam-
ine how suffering may become a source of prosocial behavior. In her words
“it is possible that something about the experience of suffering—either the
situation itself, the psychological processes that accompany it, or additional
experiences that transform the meaning of suffering—may give rise to altru-
ism and prosocial behavior” (p. 60).
Posttraumatic Growth
PTG refers to a growth process experienced by survivors of trauma, whereby
pain is transformed in a positive manner beyond survival. These positive
changes do not exclude trauma survivors’ experiences of distress and strug-
gling in the trauma’s aftermath (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1995). PTG contends
that one’s spirituality, personal strength, and life outlook can be enhanced as
a consequence of trauma (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). Staub and Vollhardt
(2008) argue that healing from trauma is a step toward developing ABS
because it can foster empathy and the desire to prevent harm from happening
to others, which can lead to specific prosocial actions. In addition, Tedeschi &
Calhoun (1995, 2004) identified compassion and altruism as possible aspects

of PTG. They posited that when people recognize their own vulnerability,
they may be better able to feel compassion and that some trauma may be a
kind of empathy training. After time has passed, it is possible that a need to
help others may emerge.
Finally, Staub and Vollhardt (2008) compare the contributions of theory
and research in the fields of resilience and PTG and argue that the uniqueness
of ABS as a psychological construct stems from “its focus on victimization
(i.e., intentional harm doing), on the prevention of violence, and on the gen-
eration of positive psychological changes that lead to helpful action” (p. 270).
In addition, ABS places less emphasis on personal characteristics and, instead,
highlights the social aspects of individual behavior.
Human Rights in Colombia

Colombia has been involved in a civil conflict for more than 50 years. Leftist
guerrillas fight the state and right-wing paramilitary organizations. These
paramilitary organizations have been found to collaborate with sectors of the
armed forces, and the Colombian government has failed to bring to justice
the military officials involved in these collaborations (Amnesty International,
2009). However, all parties are responsible for human rights violations.
Civilians, especially peasants, indigenous peoples, and Afro-Colombians,
are usually caught in the cross fire between these armed groups and, as a
result, suffer the majority of the casualties. Typically, they are forced to choose
between supporting one of the armed groups for “protection” or fleeing to
urban areas, where they become part of the urban unemployed and underem-
ployed. An estimated 2.7 million Colombians live as internal refugees
(Amnesty International, 2009). Human rights activists are targeted by these
groups as they challenge their actions and bring visibility and support from
national and international audiences.
Colombia is a multiethnic and multicultural nation with a population of
more than 42 million people, of which 3.4% are indigenous and 10.6% are
Afro-Colombian. There are about 87 distinct indigenous groups (3.43%) and
65 languages. Although, since 1991, there have been important steps in land
reclamation and autonomism, about 15% of the population are still not recog-
nized by the state and are at the mercy of continued colonization by local
landowners and multinationals seeking the exploitation of natural resources
(Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Refugiados, 2007).
In spite of this long-standing human rights situation, Colombia has a his-
torically strong tradition of active community leaders, peace activists, and
human rights defenders, all of whom continually work toward a peaceful end

to the conflict. This qualitative research project builds on the author’s previous
work (Hernández, 2000, 2002a, 2002b; Hernández & Torres, 2005) concerning
Colombian human rights activists’ transformations of traumatic experiences
and resilience. However, it explicitly uses the ABS framework developed by
Staub and Vollhardt (2008) to address the motivational bases for their helping
behavior and commitment to the human rights causes in Colombia. This study
retrospectively explores their motivations for the impetus of compassion for
and desire to help others whose human rights have been infringed.
Method
This qualitative, exploratory study was guided by grounded theory (Charmaz,
2006; Echevarria-Doan & Tubbs, 2005; Lincoln & Guba, 1985). The grounded
theory approach (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) was developed to assist research-
ers in the collection and analysis of data so as to generate ideas and theories
that are “grounded” in the data. This approach is ideal for discovery-oriented
research in areas with little theoretical development. It may be used in proj-
ects grounded in both positivistic and social constructionist epistemologies. In
this study, it was used to explore human rights activists’ experiences and ABS
using Staub and Vollhardt’s model (2008).
Data analysis was aided by the use of NVivo 8 (QSR International, 2008).
Data were collected through individual interviews over a period of 11 years.
The guidelines for trustworthiness in qualitative research were the following:
interview guideline pilot, data analysis triangulation, transferability, depend-
ability, and data analysis saturation (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005; Lincoln &
Guba, 1985; Marshall & Rossman, 1999). The research team included two
master’s-level mental health professionals involved in training and clinical
practice in the United States. An external reviewer, a doctoral level mental
health faculty member, examined the data analysis and its results at the end
of the process.
Participants
Participants in this study were human rights activists linked to nongovern-
mental organizations with at least 10 years of experience doing this work in
various parts of Colombia. Their human rights activism involved a broad
spectrum of areas related to peace development, displacement survivor sup-
port, children, indigenous and Afro-Colombians’ rights, and union rights. All
participants had experienced traumatic events related to the ongoing Colombian
civil conflict. These events included witnessing the assassination of friends

and/or relatives, experiencing or witnessing harassment and/or persecution

from the state and/or the guerrillas and the paramilitary, and/or displacement
before and after becoming involved with human rights work.
A total of 45 participants were invited to participate in the study over a span
of 11 years. Of them, 35 responded as follows: 1998, four females and four
males; 2000, four females and two males; 2002, five males and four females;
2004, four females and four males; 2006, two males and one female; 2009,
one female. Five potential participants were excluded because they lacked
a history of experiencing a traumatic event connected with the military, para-
military, and/or the guerrillas. Five potential participants were not available for
interviewing. None of the participants refused to participate in the study during
the interviews. Participants’ ages ranged from 38 to 65 years. Years of involve-
ment in human rights activism ranged between 10 and 35 years, and practice
areas varied from rural to urban and international settings.
The selection of participants was based on (a) intensity sampling, which
uses the selection of information-rich cases that manifest the phenomenon
profoundly; (b) chain sampling, which is used to identify participants through
people who know other individuals whose cases are information rich; and
(c) politically important case sampling, which involves the selection of sites
and participants according to the particular usefulness and interest of a politi-
cal dimension in the study (Patton, 2002).
Participants were invited on the basis of their work with nongovernmen-
tal organizations promoting human rights in Colombia (i.e., denouncing and
accounting for human rights violations across the country, providing mental
and educational services to victims of the sociopolitical violence, presenting
their work to the national and international media, developing peace and eco-
nomic projects, and assisting traumatized children and families). They were
recruited through networks in which the investigator had membership and
were referred by other activists. The investigator provided a general overview
of the study during preliminary contact with potential participants in person and
via e-mail or telephone. If they were interested, an e-mail or postal mail with a
complete description of the study’s follow-up interviews was sent. Individual
interviews were conducted in person and audiotaped.
Measure
Data were collected through a brief demographic questionnaire (ethnicity,
gender, age range, occupation, and education) and a semistructured interview
protocol. The protocol was developed based on previous studies on trauma

and resilience (Hernández, 2000). All questions were open ended and aimed
at eliciting the participants’ views on how they transformed the pain brought
on by traumatic experiences into human rights activism.
Procedure
Data analysis was guided by grounded theory (Charmaz, 2006; Echevarria-
Doan & Tubbs, 2005; Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Prior to data analysis the
primary researcher and the research assistants discussed their personal his-
tories with regard to trauma, resilience, and ABS. They also discussed their
interests and biases relevant to the topic of the study so as to make vis-
ible their preferences, feelings, and potential close connections to the data.
Transcripts were coded for each individual interview into categories that
were agreed on by a consensus of opinion within the team. The consensus
process involved individual review of each other’s analysis and face-to-
face meetings and conference calls to discuss how all researchers identified
categories. Areas of disagreement were further discussed until all parties felt
that their views were included in the analysis. Categories developed were
audited by all team members, and core ideas were identified for all material
within each category for each individual case. Finally, a cross-analysis
was performed to describe consistencies in the core ideas within categories
across cases.
Triangulation methods. The process of corroborating evidence from different
individuals, types of data, data collection techniques, and data analysis is used
in qualitative research to strengthen accuracy and credibility (Lincoln & Guba,
1985). Investigator triangulation involved a research team including the author
and an external reviewer. Coding for themes, categories, and core ideas was
performed by team members until consensus was reached. An independent
auditor revised the data analysis and suggested clarification of themes. As a
result of this feedback, the research team discussed and implemented modifi-
cations to the data analysis.
Data analysis. A sample of two interview transcripts was transcribed and
used to develop an initial set of basic categories that were later included and
expanded using the data from all the interviews. The narratives from the tran-
scripts were analyzed along the following categories: (a) experiences of trauma
before becoming a human rights activist, (b) motivations for helping others
via human rights activism, (c) experiences of trauma while engaged in human
rights activism, (d) actions taken to heal the aftermath of trauma, and (e) resil-
ience. This article elaborates on the analysis of Item b.

Results
The data analysis resulted in the identification of nine themes that emerged
from the participants’ narratives about their motivations for prosocial action
after suffering politically based trauma in Colombia. These themes are inter-
connected, and they have been categorized, described, and illustrated with
quotes from interview transcripts (see Table 1). All participants reported
having experienced traumatic events involving one or more of the following:
political persecution including threats, harassment, and physical violence from
the military, paramilitary, or guerrillas (i.e., visits from armed groups to par-
ticipants and/or their families to inform them that they had to leave their
lands or face execution); displacement because of the guerrilla-paramilitary-
government conflicts (i.e., escaping from their homes at night after being
warned that they would be assassinated); serious injustice at the hands of the
government (i.e., physical and emotional torture in the capital at military
headquarters); and/or witnessing a close friend or relative suffer as a result
of political persecution (i.e., observing husbands, fathers, and/or sons experi-
ence harassment, loss of property, jobs, torture, and death).
Theme 1: Affirmation of Self Despite Fear

A common outcome of victimization because of political violence is fear. All
participants (N = 35) experienced aggressions (i.e., threat to their lives, the
witnessing of an assassination, and forced displacement) intended to intimi-
date and deter them from exercising personal agency to protect their rights
(i.e., to dissent, to speak, to organize, and to own ancestral land). Participants
spoke about losing the capacity to discriminate differences in degrees of
threats and risks, struggling to overcome fear of danger to themselves and
their loved ones, and eventually finding self-affirmation. Self-affirmation
developed as participants struggled with fear, reclaimed their personal strength,
constructed meaning out of their life experiences, made a deliberate personal
choice to believe in the goodness of the world and others, and committed to
work toward a better future for those around them. A participant who witnessed
the slaying of her father stated,
In the end, this was about not letting them win my soul by taking away
my capacity to love and trust, and turning around their ignorance and
hatred and reaffirming my commitment to what I believe and to my
people.

Table 1. Altruism Born of Suffering Themes
Affirmation of self
despite fear Self-affirmation
Reclaiming personal strengths
Constructing meaning out of life experiences
Making a choice to believe in the goodness of the world and
others
Commitment to work toward a better future and others
Indignation Capacity to feel and connect with others’ pain resulting from
abuse at the hands of the military, paramilitary, or guerrillas
Taking action against the forces of silence and denial
A search for Politically motivated traumatic experiences as markers of the
meaning choices made
Commitments made for a specific human rights cause
Human rights cause as a way to help others in need
Spirituality Right to life, peace, education, nutrition, work, health, and
equity as transcendence
Spirituality as nurture of human rights cause
Justice to build Gap between those who have and those who do not have:
peace health, education, nutrition, and a livelihood
Impact of neoliberal policies and militarization that sustains
peace and prosperity for the rich
Country’s richness in human and material diversity and capital
in coexistence with a long-term, armed conflict
Support by others Familial relationships
Human rights community
Leaving legacy of Country’s richness in human and material diversity and capital
peace and agency in coexistence with a long-term, armed conflict
Recognition and Right to protect own existence, lands
equity for ethnic
minorities
Right to autonomy in social and political affairs
Protection of cultural heritage
Fostering women’s participation in decision-making processes
Exercising constitutional rights
Freeing indigenous communities from discrimination and
oppression through autonomous education and government
Gender equity Overcoming pressures from patriarchal society
Addressing relationships between economic, material
deterioration and abuse
Transition challenges from private/domestic to the public
realm in cities

Theme 2: Indignation
All participants (N = 35) reported that a strong motivation for making the
decision to engage in human rights activism involved responding with
indignation toward pervasive impunity, silence, invisibility, and denial.
The participants’ perspective on the meaning of the word “indignation”
involved two elements: (a) the capacity to feel and connect with others’
pain resulting from abuse at the hands of the military, paramilitary, or guer-
rillas and (b) taking action against the forces of silence and denial because
they make people accomplices and participants in the perpetration of vio-
lence and inequity. A physician born and raised in a rural community later
devastated by violence explained,
I have always loved this land and its people. These mountains are
sacred to us. We have been here since the Spaniards came, mixed with
us, and transformed the landscape of this culture. I was lucky to have
a parent who was a bit of business man and made enough money to
pay for my school and college. I studied medicine because I wanted
to live here, have a family, and serve my community. After guerrillas
and paras came, the area was devastated. The victims became num-
bers and once what happened here was not newsworthy; it was as if
we did not exist anymore. My family was harassed, and my father was
killed because I helped the injured. It was crazy! However, my wife
and I decided to stay, keep the memory of our community alive, and
help others in a similar situation. These tragic events only strength-
ened our resolve to be alive and believe that we could rebuild what we
had with others.
In a country where impunity has been pervasive since its formation as a

nation, the forces of silence and denial are a common response toward human
rights abuses in everyday life. Participants added that their quest to take action
involved acknowledging, facing, and sometimes overcoming their own fears
of experiencing victimization at the hands of the paramilitaries, guerrillas, or
the government. A commitment to action involved taking risks and being
aware of the personal fears that emerge as a result of anticipating possible
consequences of their actions in the realm of human rights.
Theme 3: A Search for Meaning

All participants (N = 35) reported extensively on the ways in which their
own traumatic experiences became both a source of reflection and a quest

for self-understanding, an opportunity to realize who they were, what they

wanted, and what role in society they played in relation to others. Most,
however, could not identify one single traumatic event as the source for
their motivation to help others. They shared how more than one meaningful
event contributed to their commitment to human rights activism. When
participants had the opportunity to reflect back and trace the influence of
politically motivated traumatic experiences in their lives (on their own or
as a result of the interviews conducted for this study), they discussed how
they always came back to these experiences as markers of the choices they
eventually made.
Whereas some of them spoke about commitments they made to themselves
for a cause, others followed a path involving choices in different directions,
but which ultimately lead to their commitment to a human rights cause as a
way to help others in need. For example, in the first scenario, human rights
activists who became involved in some form of activism as university students
developed pathways connecting their career and political choices. Their expe-
riences of violence, typically at the hands of the police and the military, rein-
forced and shed new light on their evolving meaning-making processes. In the
second scenario, human rights activists made career or life choices (e.g., pro-
viding medical care in a rural and poor area of the country) that exposed them
to the plight of families affected by political, social, and economic violence.
As a result of simply acting according to their own moral values to defend the
rights of people in these communities, violence was perpetrated on them.
Their path to making meaning then involved questioning their past choices,
understanding relationships between privilege and oppression, and becoming
involved in taking sustained action to help those with little or no voice.
Theme 4: Spirituality
Spirituality emerged in most interviews (N = 28) as a theme connected with
“indignation” and “search for meaning.” Participants discussed their under-
standing of taking action on behalf of others as a way to meaningfully connect
with others and who they regard as “God,” “Higher Being,” or “Ancestors.”
Working for the right to life, peace, education, nutrition, work, health, and
equity involved transcending the here and now and developing confidence
that their efforts were guided and nurtured at a spiritual level. One participant
stated, “For me, there is really no distinction between this world and the other
world. Our physicality is spiritual and what I do here transcends. I am spiritu-
ally guided all the time.”
Some participants professed a faith and spoke about their faith’s values in
relation to their human rights work. For example, a Catholic priest referred to

the “mysterious force of life” as the sustenance to keep on going and discussed
his religious values as guidance in his work. Others described their belief that
“God only acts through us. We have to take responsibility for transforming
this society now and contribute to its historical change.” Regardless of their
participation in an organized religion, participants emphasized the impor-
tance of this dimension in their lives as a pillar that sustained them beyond
everyday life and helped them bear the many obstacles and delayed rewards
involved in this work.
Theme 5: Justice to Build Peace

Participants (N = 34) highlighted contrasts in the gaps between those who
have and those who do not have in areas involving basic human needs such
as health, education, nutrition, and livelihood. They denoted a striking con-
trast between individuals identified with the Columbian mainstream society
and those identified with groups marginalized by mainstream society. Other
contrasts included the country’s richness in human and material diversity and
capital in coexistence with a long-term, armed conflict. In this context, they
articulated the need to work for a more just society as a response to the cur-
rent violence and to prevent further violence. They spoke about the impact of
neoliberal policies in the past 20 years and the current militarization that sus-
tains the peace and prosperity that citizens have in some areas of the country.
Participants explained that economic growth figures are meaningless in a
context with very high rates of unemployment, malnutrition, and lack of
health services. In addition, they referred to the dominant and exclusionary
national discourse that favors men, Catholics, heterosexuals, the Spanish
language, and the cultural heritage that emerged and evolved from the mix
of Spaniards and their Colombian-born children with the native indigenous
communities who bore their oppression.
A recent example of “justice to build peace” mentioned by a participant
included a petition made by indigenous groups to the European parliament in
Brussels to reconsider a free trade treaty with the Colombian government. In
their effort to make themselves heard and visible and to integrate their cultural
and spiritual traditions, a ceremony was offered to ask for wisdom and balance
in the decision-making process of the new parliament.
Theme 6: Leaving a Legacy of Peace

and Agency for the Next Generation
Participants (N = 35) were well aware that in countries with armed conflicts
such as Colombia, children are exposed to and become victims of abuse,

displacement, loss, and discrimination and that they lack the basic emotional
and material conditions to grow up healthy. Many suffer further cruelty by
being recruited as soldiers by the guerrillas, and still others have to work in
the informal sector of the economy. Participants acknowledged their love for
their country and its new generations. They spoke at length of the richness in
human and material capital that exists in Colombia and stated that their pres-
ent work is their contribution to a better future. Alfredo, an ex-priest who was
harassed and kept in captivity by an armed group, explained:
I may not see the fruits of the human rights work we do during my
lifetime, but this is not relevant. I am determined to do whatever I can
for the next generation. The legacy of violence, the way in which this
legacy hunts us, needs to be interrupted.
Theme 7: Support by Others

Most participants (N = 30) explicitly discussed the importance of family,
friendships, mentorships, and networks of solidarity as one of the driving
forces nurturing their initial desire for prosocial action and maintaining its
sustainability. The social networks existing in Colombia entail interpersonal
threads that comprise the social fabric of communities. This interconnected-
ness brings in both the challenges of strains on interpersonal relationships
and the reassurance and strength of being able to share and rely on people.
Descriptions of caring family members, relatives, friends, and community
members point to how solidarity is ingrained in the social fabric and ways of
caring for their social networks.
Theme 8: Recognition and Equity for Ethnic Minorities

Participants working with ethnic minorities, specifically Afro-Colombians
and indigenous groups (N = 10), spoke about their motivations in their human
rights work. Those who considered themselves members of these groups
described their motivations for working on behalf of their communities as a
means to protect their existence, the lands that were taken from them, their
autonomy in their social and political affairs, and their cultural heritage. Both
groups have been severely victimized by the conflicts between military, para-
military, and guerrillas, in addition to the legacy of genocide that was perpe-
trated on them since Europeans arrived in their lands. An indigenous leader
shared that one of her main motivations is to prepare the youth, especially
girls, to become community leaders. She stated that “the most important chal-
lenge is to create spaces and bring in women to public spaces so that they can

be a part of decision-making processes and exercise the rights that the consti-
tution offers to us.” Another participant added that her motivation is based on
freeing indigenous communities from discrimination and oppression “through
autonomous education and government.”
Participants working with Afro-Colombians discussed the legacy of racial
discrimination and economic oppression, in addition to the many massacres
committed against them in the past 20 years. They traced their prosocial action
on behalf of this group to the early 1990s and expressed that it was the lack
of visibility of the Afro-Colombian community, even to human rights organi-
zations, that fostered their desire to dedicate their lives to working with these
communities. One of the participants spoke about the impact of massacres in
the communities and the legacy of unresolved issues at the interpersonal and
public/governmental level, which continue to affect them today. She stated,
When I first started to work with them, I thought I knew enough about
their history and plight. As I dug myself into the work, I realized not
only my ignorance, but also the astounding lack of support for them.
I experienced their oppression. . . . I was so impacted by the children
that I decided to put my energy into working with them.
Theme 9: Gender Equity

All participants referred to the needs and rights of women and children as
a key dimension of their motivation for their overall commitment to human
rights. However, only half (N = 16) cited this as a specific motivation for
their prosocial action. These participants saw the cause for women’s rights
from a perspective that situates them as actors in war, resistance, and survival.
They spoke about their survival and transformation strategies. They acknowl-
edged that women face additional pressures in the patriarchal Colombian
society and that there is a relationship between economic, material deteriora-
tion and abuse. In addition, displaced women from rural areas also face tre-
mendous difficulties making the transition from the private/domestic realm
to the public realm in cities. An indigenous activist explained her views as
follows:
We face discrimination from society because we are indigenous, but we

also face sexism both from the state and within our own communities.
We must work hard with our children to change the ways in which we
as women continue to raise our children without equality for girls and
boys. Within the government and in the public arena, there is a major

obstacle for us: if we make any mistake, we are judged more harshly
than men.
Discussion
In their seminal work on ABS, Staub and Vollhardt (2008, p. 268) asked,
“What are the experiences, and the resulting psychological changes, through
which people who have suffered, especially from significant victimization,
may come to care about and help others?” Their interpretive framework
served as a basis to examine how Colombian human rights activists, who
experienced violence before and during their initial years of advocating for
human rights, made sense of adversity and took action to help others through
activism.
In looking at their motivations, it is clear that the outlook of Colombian
human rights activists is one of hope and transcendence, one in which per-
sonal traumatic experiences are seen as an occasion for healing and as a cel-
ebration of life, justice, and culture, which can survive against all odds. Their
testimonies affirm the existence and development of the coping processes
that occur in their lives, namely, the rebuilding and sustaining of social
relationships, the healing of wounds of trauma and of losses of war, and the
reconstructing of a sense of belonging and personal identity in the human
rights arena.
In addition, this study sheds light on how context shapes the meaning of
ABS. For example, the activists’ meaning-making processes and spirituality
are a part of their healing process. No participant mentioned psychotherapy as
an avenue for personal healing. In this regard, it is important to note that psy-
chotherapy would not necessarily be a good cultural fit for some of them and
that, in some circles, it is still associated with the stigma of mental illness.
Furthermore, this is usually an expensive service, for which the middle and
upper classes pay out-of-pocket.
Other themes reflecting the promotion of psychological health, which
would fall under the rubric of bringing to light the roots of violence, include
justice to build peace, recognition and equity for ethnic minorities, and gender
equity. Support by others was clearly a major part of their lives and was identi-
fied as an essential element in healing from and transcending victimization.
ABS, both as a concept and as a model (Staub & Vollhardt, 2008), invites us
to affirm a side of pain that is not always visible but one that can motivate oth-
ers to heal and develop prosocial motivations. A focus on making ABS stories,
activism, and healing methods visible in the media may foster appreciation for
both the impact of trauma and the growth processes that emerge from it.

Methodological Limitations
The exploratory nature of this research invites reflection on the methodology
and consideration of alternate directions for future research on the topic.
Because the human rights activists’ narratives were collected over a span of
11 years through open-ended interviews, there has been some variability in
the topics discussed. This has sometimes been because of the changing
nature of the Colombian political landscape.
Another issue related to trustworthiness in qualitative research involves cred-
ibility (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Credibility refers to the development of credible
findings and interpretations based on the research design, participants, and con-
text of the study. Credibility was established by using investigator and data
triangulation. However, this study could be have been strengthened by involv-
ing the participants’ in reviewing the findings and providing feedback in the
writing of the results. Findings should also be considered in light of the limita-
tions presented by the methodology. For example, generalizability is limited.
Finally, in the 1980s, Martín-Baró (1987) outlined three tasks for social
Latin American psychology: (a) a systematic study of the multiple types and
dimensions of awareness constituting popular thinking, (b) examining and
enhancing resilience processes (making visible and enhancing popular virtues),
and (c) studying popular organizations as instruments of liberation. This study
responds to the second task and expands on it in the search for transcending
resilience through altruism. Future studies may continue to focus on examin-
ing the healing and altruism promoting processes that coexist with civil con-
flict and make a difference in the life of communities.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship
and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research and/or authorship of this
article.
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Bio
Pilar Hernández-Wolfe is an associate profes-

sor and director of the Clinical Counseling
Program at Johns Hopkins University. Her
research interests include resilience and trau-
matic stress in social context, clinical supervi-
sion, domestic violence, and family therapy
education.

Altruism Born of Suffering: How Colombian Human Rights Activists Transform Pain Into Prosocial Action

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ndez-WolfeJournal of Humanistic Psychology

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International media frequently overemphasize news about drugs and delin-

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extent, but no less pernicious, Colombian media behave in a similar manner.