We believe that this Advanced Research Workshop has given participants an opportunity to foster essential international collaborative research on the diagnosis and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder, a common and disabling consequence of war, terrorism, and natural disasters. As a result, it represents an important piece in efforts to help soldiers and civilians of NATO and partner nations in the face of future international conflicts.

This publication contains the full papers corresponding to the relevant presentations provided at the workshop.

This text is organized so as to provide a coherent picture of the work and thoughts of participants in the ARW, rather than necessarily following the exact order of the presentations as they were provided in Cavtat, although this summary conveys to the reader the manner in which presentations and working groups were conducted.

Appropriate financial support was vital for the successful organization and implementation of the workshop. Grateful acknowledgments for generosity go to the primary sponsor, the NATO Security through Science Programme, as well as to a number of Croatian donors, who recognized the importance of this event. As a token of our appreciation, the logos of all sponsors are included here.

The workshop was organized and this accompanying publication was assembled by joint dedication and efforts from the members of Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS), Bethesda, MD, and University of Zagreb, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FEEC), Croatia. Professor Michael Roy of USUHS, the NATO-country program co-director and organizing co-director, conceived the overall design of the workshop, and with the assistance of his research assistant Patricia Kraus, wrote and submitted an application to NATO. Dr. Roy selected and invited the majority of the speakers and participants, and he and Ms. Kraus edited each of the chapters incorporated in this publication. Professor Kresimir Cosic, the organizing co-director and a member of FEEC, coordinated financial aspects of the ARW, solicited additional funding from Croatian donors, invited representatives of the Government of Croatia, and promoted the workshop within international politico-military circles. He coordinated coverage of the workshop with Croatian Radiotelevision, and organized meals as well as a boat trip to Dubrovnik for participants. Professor Dragica Kozaric Kovacic, the partner-country program co-director and a member of University Hospital Dubrava in Zagreb, Croatia, extended invitations to several international speakers, further improving the quality of the workshop. Assistant Professor Miroslav Slamic, a member of FEEC, handled accreditations, the purchase of consumable supplies, and designed such items as the workshop poster, program cover, and the appearance of compact disks (CDs) of presentations and pictures for participants. He was also the workshop photographer. Sinisa Popovic, a member of FEEC, was the “glue” that held together the planning and smooth running of the workshop, coordinating travel, lodging and meal arrangements, precise estimation of expenses, assembling of workshop materials, and other arrangements with the conference site. Marko Cosic designed the gala dinner menu and coupons, and assisted Mr. Popovic with local arrangements and assembling of workshop materials, handled some on-site financial matters, etc. Workshop CDs were made possible through the joint efforts of Miroslav Slamic, Sinisa Popovic, Marko Cosic, and Patricia Kraus.

Dr. Roy also gratefully acknowledges the many hours of assistance Ms. Kraus provided in reviewing the manuscripts for this text.