Hostage survivors require specialist support to overcome emotional, physical and psychological challenges
A University of Gloucestershire psychology expert has explained the complex issues facing hostage survivors after they have been released from captivity and prepare to return home to their families.
Dr Amy Grubb, Associate Professor of Forensic Psychology, said hostage survivors often required long-term support tailored to their individual needs to enable them to overcome emotional, physical and psychological traumas.
It comes amid the release of Israelis kidnapped in a cross-border attack by Hamas on 7 October 2023. After 15 months of fighting, Israel and Hamas have agreed a ceasefire deal in which Israeli hostages are being freed in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

Dr Grubb (pictured left) whose research has an emphasis on hostage negotiation, said: “Hostages who have been in captivity for prolonged periods of time can sometimes experience personality changes after such a traumatic period in their lives.
“This means that when they are released and rejoin the outside world, they may appear to be very different people to how they were before they were captured, to their family and their loved ones.
“We should remember that their families will have experienced their own trauma as they worry about the fate of their loved ones in captivity, so they may have changed in terms of their personality and outlook on life, themselves too.
“As a result, it can take time to rebuild these personal bonds, and everyone affected will need support to readjust and recalibrate their relationships. In my experience, it is certainly not something that can be fixed quickly.
“It has to be a slow and steady process to enable the hostage survivors and their families to receive the psychological support they need and allow them to work through some of the trauma that they’ve experienced. In this situation, patience is a vital component of the psychological process.”
Different levels of resilience
Dr Grubb, from the University’s School of Education and Science, said the physical environments in which hostages had been kept and their individual personalities would impact their ability to readjust to life following their release from captivity.
Dr Grubb said: “If hostages have been kept in dark tunnels, for instance, the teams looking after them will want to gradually ease them back into naturally lit areas to help them acclimatise to their new environment.
“For example, a lack of ventilation in a dark tunnel could cause respiratory issues, so it would be a case of working with medics to try and make sure that they’ve got any medical issues relating to respiration resolved as well.
“It is important to be aware that every person will respond differently to being kept captive, because people have different levels of resilience or what we call protective factors to help them cope with a traumatic situation. This means every hostage survivor needs to be treated as an individual – there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution.”