Trauma Symptoms (trauma + symptom)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Psychological trauma exposure and trauma symptoms among individuals with high and low levels of dental anxiety

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ORAL SCIENCES, Issue 4 2006
Ad De Jongh
This questionnaire-based study investigated the traumatic background and trauma-related symptomatology among 141 treatment-seeking individuals with high levels of dental anxiety and among a low-anxious reference group consisting of 99 regular dental patients. The highly anxious individuals reported a significantly higher number of traumatic events, both within and outside the dental or medical setting, than those in the reference group (73% vs. 21%). Horrific experiences in the dental setting were the most common traumatic events reported. Of the highly anxious individuals, 46.1% indicated suffering from one or more of the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters (re-experiencing, avoidance, loss of interest, and insomnia), while in the reference group this percentage was 6%. Severity of dental anxiety was significantly associated with number of screening criteria for specific phobia and the extent to which the anxious subjects displayed symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Two variables were uniquely predictive for positive diagnostic screens for dental phobia and PTSD: having experienced a horrific dental treatment and having been a victim of a violent crime. In conclusion, post-traumatic symptoms are common accompaniments of severe forms of dental anxiety and are experienced even when dental treatment is not imminent. [source]


Does integrated trauma-informed substance abuse treatment increase treatment retention?

JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 7 2007
Hortensia Amaro
This article presents findings from a quasi-experimental, nonrandomized group design study that explored whether trauma-enhanced substance abuse treatment results in longer residential treatment stays and improved outcomes compared with treatment-as-usual. We used a subsample (N = 461) of participants in the Women, Co-Occurring Disorders and Violence Study, which was sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The intervention group was 31% less likely to discontinue treatment within 4 months. Baseline mental health and trauma symptoms and alcohol and drug severity scores predicted neither overall length of time in treatment nor differences in retention between intervention and comparison groups. Substance abuse and mental health symptoms improved with increased duration of treatment, particularly for women with more severe baseline symptoms. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comm Psychol 35: 845,862, 2007. [source]


Violence exposure in home and community: Influence on posttraumatic stress symptoms in Army recruits,

JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2004
Mark G. Chapin
This study assessed the levels and types of violence exposure, levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms, and the relationship among exposure to violence, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and early discharge in U.S. Army recruits at Basic Combat Training (BCT). The study applied a modified ABCX model of family stress adaptation developed by McCubbin, Thompson, and McCubbin (1996). A sample of 779 BCT recruits were surveyed before training began. At the end of training, data was collected on those recruits who had been discharged before completion of training. Statistical measures of association were used to assess the relationship between the variables. Results supported all three of the hypotheses tested. Significant positive relationships were found between violence exposure and trauma symptoms, as well as levels of trauma symptoms and odds of early discharge. Patterns of association were found between types of exposure to community versus home violence and specific symptom clusters of traumatic stress. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comm Psychol 32: 527,541, 2004. [source]


Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples and Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors

JOURNAL OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY, Issue 3 2008
Heather B. MacIntosh
This study explored Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples with childhood sexual abuse survivors (CSA) and their partners. Half of the couples in this study reported clinically significant increases in mean relationship satisfaction and clinically significant decreases in trauma symptoms, and thematic analyses identified numerous areas where trauma survivors were challenged in fully engaging in the therapy process. In particular, trauma symptoms such as affect dysregulation and hypervigilance were identified to play a role in the challenges that survivors experienced in fully engaging in the EFT process. Results of these thematic analyses yielded clinical recommendations for working with CSA survivors and their partners in EFT for traumatized couples. Recommendations for future study were articulated. [source]


Children's memory for trauma and positive experiences

JOURNAL OF TRAUMATIC STRESS, Issue 3 2003
Lucy Berliner
Abstract Characteristics of children's memory for a trauma and for a positive event were compared and relationships of memory characteristics to trauma symptoms examined in 30 children who experienced a traumatic event. Results revealed that memories for trauma tended to have less sensory detail and coherence, yet have more meaning and impact than did memories for positive experiences. Sexual traumas, offender relationship, and perceived life threat were associated with memory characteristics. Few relationships between memory characteristics and trauma symptoms were found. Therapist ratings of child memory characteristics were correlated with some child trauma memory characteristic reports. These results are consistent with other studies. Possible explanations include divided attention during the traumatic event and cognitive avoidance occurring after the event. [source]


The Complexity of Trauma Types in the Lives of Women in Families Referred for Family Violence: Multiple Mediators of Mental Health

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHOPSYCHIATRY, Issue 4 2008
Victoria L. Banyard PhD
Responding to calls for further research about the impact of multiple types of trauma across the life span, this study examines the interconnections among types of trauma in childhood and adulthood in a convenience clinical sample of 283 women obtaining social services for family violence. In particular, variables including family of-origin dysfunction and other childhood risk factors, relationship victimization in adulthood, and the presence of adult resources were examined as mediators of links between child maltreatment and adult mental health symptoms. Variables were assessed at different time points, 3 years apart. Path analysis revealed that the conceptual model of multiple pathways between childhood family violence exposure and adult outcomes fit the data well. In particular, the link between child maltreatment and adult trauma symptoms was mediated by more proximal adult sexual and intimate partner violence and its association with childhood risk markers (e.g., negative family environment) and decreased markers of resources. This link was not significant for a more general index of mental health symptoms in adulthood. [source]


Supportive-expressive group therapy for women with metastatic breast cancer: survival and psychosocial outcome from a randomized controlled trial

PSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 4 2007
David W. Kissane
Abstract Background: Mixed reports exist about the impact of supportive-expressive group therapy (SEGT) on survival. Methods: From 485 women with advanced breast cancer recruited between 1996,2002, 227 (47%) consented and were randomized within an average 10 months of cancer recurrence in a 2:1 ratio to intervention with 1 year or more of weekly SEGT plus three classes of relaxation therapy (147 women) or to control receiving three classes of relaxation therapy (80 women). The primary outcome was survival; psychosocial well-being was appraised secondarily. Analysis was by intention-to-treat. Results: SEGT did not prolong survival (median survival 24.0 months in SEGT and 18.3 in controls; univariate hazard ratio for death 0.92 [95% CI, 0.69,1.26]; multivariate hazard ratio, 1.06 [95% CI, 0.74,1.51]). Significant predictors of survival were treatment with chemotherapy and hormone therapy (p<0.001), visceral metastases (p<0.001) and advanced disease at first diagnosis (p<0.05). SEGT ameliorated and prevented new DSM-IV depressive disorders (p = 0.002), reduced hopeless,helplessness (p = 0.004), trauma symptoms (p = 0.04) and improved social functioning (p = 0.03). Conclusions: SEGT did not prolong survival. It improved quality of life, including treatment of and protection against depression. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Growing Pains: Commentary on the Field of Posttraumatic Growth and Hobfoll and Colleagues' Recent Contributions to it

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2007
Lisa D. Butler
The field of research on benefit-finding and growth following traumatic experience lacks consensus with respect to some central conceptual questions, and a number of these issues are apparent in the research reported by Stevan Hobfoll and his colleagues. In this commentary I briefly discuss, and at times dispute, some of the assertions and assumptions in this target article that I believe reflect these broader issues, including that: psychosocial gains (or benefits) and psychological growth are equivalent, reporting gains (or benefits) represents maladaptive efforts at coping, posttraumatic growth (PTG) is necessarily linked with positive psychological adjustment, and trauma symptoms represent poor adjustment following traumatic event exposure. I also discuss the intriguing proposal of this research: that action is essential to true growth. Les recherches sur la maturation et les avantages que l'on peut tirer d'une expérience traumatisante sont en désaccord sur des aspects théoriques majeurs, et certains de ces problèmes apparaissent dans l'étude présentée par Stevan Hobfoll et ses collègues. Dans ce commentaire, je discute brièvement et parfois conteste certaines des affirmations et hypothèses de cet article de référence qui, je pense, renvoie à des questions plus vastes telles que: les gains (ou bénéfices) psychosociaux et le développement psychologique sont équivalents; signaler des gains (ou des bénéfices) représente un effort inapproprié pour faire face à la situation; le développement post-traumatique est nécessairement en relation avec une adaptation psychologique positive; les symptômes traumatiques traduisent une adaptation faible suite à l'exposition à l'évènement pénible. Je discute aussi cette idée curieuse selon laquelle l'action est essentielle au vrai développement. [source]