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Ahmadi F, Goodarzi MA, Taghavi MR, Imani M. Modeling the structural relationships between trauma exposure with substance use tendency, depression symptoms, and suicidal thoughts in individuals with earthquake trauma experience: the mediatory role of peritraumatic dissociation and experiential avoidance. BMC Psychiatry 2024; 24:171. [PMID: 38429677 PMCID: PMC10905816 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-024-05595-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite the fact that studies indicate that earthquake trauma is associated with numerous psychological consequences, the mediating mechanisms leading to these outcomes have not been well-studied. Therefore, this study investigates the relationship between trauma exposure with substance use tendency, depression, and suicidal thoughts, with the mediating role of peritraumatic dissociation and experiential avoidance. METHODS The descriptive-correlational approach was employed in this study. The participants were people who had experienced the Kermanshah earthquake in 2017. A total of 324 people were selected by convenient sampling method. The Traumatic Exposure Severity Scale, the Peritraumatic Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire, the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire, the Iranian Addiction Potential Scale, Beck's Depression Inventory [BDI-II], and Beck's Suicidal Thoughts Scale were used to collect data. The gathered data was analyzed using structural equation modeling in SPSS Ver. 24 and LISREL Ver. 24. RESULTS The study findings indicated that the intensity of the trauma exposure is directly and significantly associated with depression symptoms, peritraumatic dissociation, and experiential avoidance. The severity of exposure to trauma had a significant indirect effect on the tendency to use substances through experiential avoidance. This is while the severity of the trauma experience did not directly correlate with substance use and suicidal thoughts. In addition, peritraumatic dissociation did not act as a mediator in the relationship between the severity of trauma exposure with substance use, depression, and suicidal thoughts. CONCLUSIONS The severity of exposure to the earthquake was associated with symptoms of depression and these findings indicate the importance of experiential avoidance in predicting the tendency to use drugs. Hence, it is essential to design and implement psychological interventions that target experiential avoidance to prevent drug use tendencies and to establish policies that lower depression symptoms following natural disasters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Farshad Ahmadi
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran.
| | - Mohammad Ali Goodarzi
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran
| | - Mohammad Reza Taghavi
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran
| | - Mahdi Imani
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran
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Kokun O, Pischko I, Lozinska N. Military personnel's stress reactivity during pre-deployment in a war zone. PSYCHOL HEALTH MED 2023; 28:2341-2352. [PMID: 35866414 DOI: 10.1080/13548506.2022.2104882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Many studies have been conducted on the numerous negative post-deployment outcomes for military personnel. However, data on service members' pre-deployment stress reactivity are absent. This is a serious gap in existing research, as stress has an important regulatory role. This study aimed to determine possible manifestations of military personnel's stress reactivity during pre-deployment in a war zone in eastern Ukraine. The study involved 270 Ukrainian service members (all male, aged 18 to 58 years). Sample 1 (n = 108) were preparing to be deployed for the first time, sample 2 (n = 84) were preparing to be deployed and had previous experience of deployment, and sample 3 (n = 108) were not preparing to deploy and had no previous deployment experience. We used the Ukrainian adaptation of the Giessen Subjective Complaints List (GBB-24), the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R), the Short Screening Scale for DSM-IV posttraumatic stress disorder and the Combat Exposure Scale (CES). We found that indicators for physical complaints, psychological problems and psychopathological and posttraumatic symptoms among service members from samples 1 and 2 were significantly higher than those of sample 3 in 15 of 18 cases (p < 0.001-0.05). The indicators obtained for sample 2 were higher than those of sample 1 in six of nine cases (p < 0.001-0.05). Both our study hypotheses were confirmed. The present findings can be used to develop efficient psychological interventions for military personnel during pre-deployment in a war zone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oleg Kokun
- Directorate, G.S. Kostiuk Institute of Psychology of National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine
| | - Iryna Pischko
- Department of Military Psychological Research, Research Centre of Humanitarian Problem of Armed Forces of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine
| | - Natalia Lozinska
- Department of Military Psychological Research, Research Centre of Humanitarian Problem of Armed Forces of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine
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3
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Metz M, Whitehill R, Alraqiq HM. Personality traits and risk of posttraumatic stress disorder among dental residents during COVID-19 crisis. J Dent Educ 2022; 86:1562-1572. [PMID: 35821196 PMCID: PMC9350082 DOI: 10.1002/jdd.13034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has presented mental health challenges among healthcare professionals, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Few studies have examined PTSD predictors in dental settings. This cross-sectional study aimed to describe the relationship between personality traits and PTSD symptoms among US dental residents engaged in patient care during the pandemic. METHODS An online survey was administered to residents in advanced education in general dentistry, dental anesthesia, general practice residency, oral and maxillofacial surgery, and pediatric dentistry programs between September 2020 and April 2021. The survey included a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Big Five Inventory, and the PTSD Checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. Logistic regression models, analysis of variance, and Tukey tests were used to examine the association between variables and PTSD scores and assess differences in personality traits and PTSD by specialty. RESULTS Among 149 respondents (mean age = 29.9 ± 4.9 years; 57.0% female), 53.7% reported experiencing stress during the pandemic. Many residents (38.9%) were not aware of available mental health resources. A total of 17.4% of residents met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, but only 1.3% reported a previous PTSD diagnosis. The most significant predictors of PTSD were neuroticism (odds ratio = 2.90, p = 0.046) and stress unrelated to the resident's program role during the pandemic (odds ratio = 5.88, p = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS PTSD symptoms were highly prevalent among dental residents, with stress and neuroticism being the most significant predictors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margot Metz
- College of Dental MedicineColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Rachel Whitehill
- College of Dental MedicineColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Hosam M. Alraqiq
- College of Dental MedicineColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA,National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial ResearchBethesdaMarylandUSA
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Meyer EC, Zimering RT, Knight J, Morissette SB, Kamholz BW, Coe E, Carpenter TP, Keane TM, Kimbrel NA, Gulliver SB. Negative Emotionality Interacts with Trauma Exposure to Prospectively Predict Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms During Firefighters' First 3 Years of Service. J Trauma Stress 2021; 34:333-344. [PMID: 33247974 DOI: 10.1002/jts.22632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2019] [Revised: 10/23/2020] [Accepted: 10/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Firefighters (FFs) protect the public despite significant risks to their health and well-being stemming from frequent trauma exposure and other occupational stressors. A minority of FFs develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or related mental health problems, whereas most remain remarkably resilient despite enormous stress. This points toward substantial variability in responses to traumatic stress among FFs. Personality, particularly negative emotionality (NEM), has been shown to predict the development of PTSD in other trauma-exposed populations, yet has not been prospectively studied in relation to PTSD in FFs. The aim of this secondary analysis from a broader study of mental health in FFs was to test whether preemployment NEM predicted PTSD symptom severity over time by influencing how FFs respond to traumatic experiences. In this first prospective study of the development of PTSD symptoms in professional FFs, 322 FFs were recruited from seven urban fire academies across the United States and followed over their first 3 years of fire service. We assessed NEM during the fire academy as well as trauma exposure and both self-reported and clinician-rated PTSD symptoms at 1-, 2-, and 3-year follow-ups. Level of trauma exposure and NEM predicted PTSD symptoms over time, and NEM moderated the effect of trauma exposure on clinician-rated PTSD symptoms across both trauma exposure measures at 1- and 3-year follow-ups, f2 = .03-.10, but not at 2-year follow-up nor for self-reported PTSD symptoms. These findings indicate that NEM, assessed upon entry into a high-risk occupation, is useful in predicting PTSD symptom development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric C Meyer
- Warriors Research Institute at Baylor Scott & White Health, Waco, Texas, USA.,Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College of Medicine, College Station, Texas, USA.,VA VISN 17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans at Central Texas Veterans Healthcare System, Waco, Texas, USA.,Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
| | - Rose T Zimering
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jeffrey Knight
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,National Center for PTSD Behavioral Science Division, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Sandra B Morissette
- Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA
| | - Barbara W Kamholz
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Elizabeth Coe
- Warriors Research Institute at Baylor Scott & White Health, Waco, Texas, USA
| | | | - Terence M Keane
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,National Center for PTSD Behavioral Science Division, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Nathan A Kimbrel
- Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Suzy B Gulliver
- Warriors Research Institute at Baylor Scott & White Health, Waco, Texas, USA.,Texas A&M University Health Science Center, College of Medicine, College Station, Texas, USA
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Olff M, Amstadter A, Armour C, Birkeland MS, Bui E, Cloitre M, Ehlers A, Ford JD, Greene T, Hansen M, Lanius R, Roberts N, Rosner R, Thoresen S. A decennial review of psychotraumatology: what did we learn and where are we going? Eur J Psychotraumatol 2019; 10:1672948. [PMID: 31897268 PMCID: PMC6924542 DOI: 10.1080/20008198.2019.1672948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
On 6 December 2019 we start the 10th year of the European Journal of Psychotraumatogy (EJPT), a full Open Access journal on psychotrauma. This editorial is part of a special issue/collection celebrating the 10 years anniversary of the journal where we will acknowledge some of our most impactful articles of the past decade (also discussed below and marked with * in the reference list). In this editorial the editors present a decennial review of the field addressing a range of topics that are core to both the journal and to psychotraumatology as a discipline. These include neurobiological developments (genomics, neuroimaging and neuroendocrine research), forms of trauma exposure and impact across the lifespan, mass trauma and early interventions, work-related trauma, trauma in refugee populations, and the potential consequences of trauma such as PTSD or Complex PTSD, but also resilience. We address innovations in psychological, medication (enhanced) and technology-assisted treatments, mediators and moderators like social support and finally how new research methods help us to gain insights in symptom structures or to better predict symptom development or treatment success. We aimed to answer three questions 1. Where did we stand in 2010? 2. What did we learn in the past 10 years? 3. What are our knowledge gaps? We conclude with a number of recommendations concerning top priorities for the future direction of the field of psychotraumatology and correspondingly the journal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miranda Olff
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam
University Medical Centers (location AMC), University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam
Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- ARQ National Psychotrauma
Centre, Diemen, The Netherlands
| | - Ananda Amstadter
- Departemnts of Psychiatry, Psychology, &
Human and Molecular Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond,
USA
| | - Cherie Armour
- School of Psychology, Queens University
Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
| | - Marianne S. Birkeland
- Section for implementation and treatment
research, Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo
Norway
| | - Eric Bui
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts
General Hospital & Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA,
USA
| | - Marylene Cloitre
- National Center for PTSD Dissemination and
Training Division, Palo Alto, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral
Sciences, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - Anke Ehlers
- Department of Experimental Psychology,
University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Julian D. Ford
- Department of Psychiatry, University of
Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, USA
| | - Talya Greene
- Department of Community Mental Health,
University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Maj Hansen
- Department of Psychology,
Odense, Denmark
| | - Ruth Lanius
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Research
Unit, Western University of Canada, London, ON,
Canada
| | - Neil Roberts
- Psychology and Psychological Therapies
Directorate, Cardiff & Vale University Health Board, Cardiff,
UK
- Division of Psychological Medicine &
Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff,
UK
| | - Rita Rosner
- Department of Clinical and Biological
Psychology, KU Eichstaett-Ingolstadt, Eichstaett,
Germany
| | - Siri Thoresen
- Section for trauma, catastrophes and forced
migration – children and youth, Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress
Studies, Oslo, Norway
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder is increasingly recognized as having a variable course in returning veterans. Relatively few studies have identified predictors of illness duration or severity in this population. This review sought to synthesize the existing literature. RECENT FINDINGS The existing literature remains limited and heterogeneous. However, several studies identified hyperarousal and pre-deployment dissociation as predictive of disease severity, and re-experiencing as predictive of suicidality in veterans with combat-related PTSD. No other pre-, peri-, or posttraumatic psychosocial predictors of individual symptoms or overall disease severity have been identified in replicated studies. Important clinical factors to explore in the assessment of PTSD in combat veterans may now include hyperarousal and a history of dissociation as these may predict disease severity, and re-experiencing as this has been identified as a significant predictor of suicidality. Further study into this topic may reveal biological or more sensitive psychosocial markers predicting illness severity and prognosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael L Able
- F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA. .,, North Bethesda, USA.
| | - David M Benedek
- F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
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Ponce de León B, Andersen S, Karstoft KI, Murphy S, Elklit A. Sensation seeking as a predictor of psychopathology in Danish soldiers deployed to Afghanistan. MILITARY PSYCHOLOGY 2018. [DOI: 10.1080/08995605.2018.1478544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Beatriz Ponce de León
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark
- Psychiatry, Afdeling for Traume- og Torturoverlevere, Region of Southern Denmark
| | - Søren Andersen
- Research and Knowledge Centre, The Danish Veteran Centre, Ringsted, Denmark
| | | | - Siobhan Murphy
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark
| | - Ask Elklit
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark
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