Psychological reactions to torture present physicians, clinicians and social scientists with the challenge of evaluating and assisting individuals who have survived crises of life-threatening proportions. For many that have survived torture, the experience can cause profound effects at a deeply personal level that may persist and fluctuate for many years. Psychological consequences develop in the context of personal meaning and personality development. They will vary over time and are shaped by cultural, social, political, interpersonal, biological and intrapsychic factors that are unique to each individual. One should not assume that all forms of torture have the same outcome. However, over the past two decades much has been learned about psychological, biological and neuropsychiatric responses to extreme stress, including torture, and clusters of typical symptoms have emerged that are recognised across cultures.