Cognitive appraisal of exposure to specific types of trauma - a study of gender differences

Predictors of COVID-Related stress in a community sample in Turkey: a cross-sectional study

The distinctive mental health features associated with COVID-19 have gained importance as the psychological effects of the pandemic on the community become more visible. This study aims to assess the COVID-related stress status and associated factors in the community sample of Turkey. The sample of this cross-sectional study is composed of 2.065 people between the ages of 18-90. Data were collected through an online survey prepared by Google.docs between October-December, 2020. Mild to moderate stress was found in the community with the most common symptoms of the fear of contamination and danger. Some variables, such as being female and the severity of COVID-19 illness, were associated with higher COVID-related stress. Vulnerable groups associated with high stress should be monitored during the pandemic. The findings of this study will guide the practices of professionals working in the field of public health, healthcare, or mental health in possible future pandemics.

Gender Differences in the Relationship between Lifetime Exposure to Trauma and the Development of Pathological Personality Traits

Gender differences in the prevalence, types and outcomes of traumas have consistently been reported in the literature. Other research has documented that exposure to trauma is associated with the development and maintenance of pathological personality traits. In the current study, we examined the moderating role of gender in the association between lifetime exposure to trauma and pathological personality traits. The sample included 148 clients who sought treatment at a community mental health clinic. All participants completed online questionnaires including demographic information, the Trauma History Questionnaire (THQ), and the Personality Inventory for DSM-5-Brief Form (PID-5-BF) at the entry to treatment. Our findings documented a significant association between exposure to trauma and pathological personality traits in men, but not in women. Furthermore, this pattern of results was specifically evident within two personality domains: antagonism and detachment. These findings contribute to the theoretical understanding of the interplay between trauma, gender, and the development of pathological personality traits. They expand upon the growing knowledge about the mental health crisis among boys and men by shedding light on the unique vulnerabilities that men face in response to traumatic experiences and how these experiences can have a lasting impact on their adaptive functioning. Consequently, at the clinical level, the current study emphasizes the importance of paying particular attention to men's trauma histories and explicitly exploring these during the intake session.

Profiles of posttraumatic stress disorder and negative world assumptions in treatment-seeking refugees

Background: Refugees often suffer from trauma-related psychopathology, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Negative world assumptions are strongly correlated with the development, course, and severity of PTSD.Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether there are distinct profiles of PTSD and negative world assumptions (NWA) and examine whether trauma load, torture, and gender differentially predict such symptom profiles.Method: In a sample of 225 treatment-seeking refugees who had resettled in the Netherlands, latent profile analysis was used to identify subgroups of patients sharing the same profile of PTSD and NWA symptoms. Predictors of profile membership were analyzed via multinomial logistic regression.Results: A three-profile solution yielded the best model fit: a low PTSD/low NWA profile (23.6%), a high PTSD/high NWA profile (41.8%), and a high PTSD/low NWA profile (34.7%). Participants who reported a higher trauma load, were more likely to be part of the high PTSD/high NWA profile or the high PTSD/low NWA profile in comparison to low PTSD/low NWA profile. Participants who reported having experienced torture were more likely to be part of the high PTSD/high NWA profile in comparison to low PTSD/low NWA profile. Gender did not differentiate between the profiles.Conclusions: This study reveals that among treatment-seeking refugees resettled in the Netherlands, there are distinct profiles of PTSD and NWA. These profiles indicate that PTSD and NWA are not uniformly experienced among refugees, emphasizing the diversity in their psychological responses to trauma. Among individuals experiencing severe PTSD symptoms, a subgroup was identified of individuals who additionally exhibited negative assumptions about themselves, others, and the world. Recognizing this heterogeneity is crucial in both research and clinical practice, particularly in the context of refugee mental health. Directions for future research are discussed.

Posttraumatic Cognitions and Condomless Sex Among Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) with a History of Childhood Sexual Abuse: The Role of Avoidance Coping

This study explicated associations between trauma-related cognitions and condomless sex, examining avoidance coping style and behavior (i.e., substance use) as intermediate variables, among a group disproportionately affected by both trauma and HIV. Two hundred and ninety HIV-negative MSM with a history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) completed a cross-sectional psychosocial battery. Trauma-related cognitions were positively associated with more acts of condomless sex. Indirect associations on condomless sex were driven by avoidance coping, but not substance use. Findings indicate a need to address trauma-related cognitions and avoidance coping within interventions for reducing HIV risk among MSM with a history of CSA.

Developmental trauma: Conceptual framework, associated risks and comorbidities, and evaluation and treatment

Children exposed to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and pervasive interpersonal traumas may go on to develop PTSD and, in most cases, will further undergo a significant shift in their developmental trajectory. This paper examines contemporary research on Developmental Trauma (DT), which is inextricably linked to disruptions in social cognition, physiological and behavioral regulation, and parent-child attachments. Developmental trauma associated with early experiences of abuse or neglect leads to multi-faceted and longstanding consequences and underscores critical periods of development, complex stress-mediated adaptations, and multilevel, trans-theoretical influences in the diagnostic formulation and treatment of traumatized children, adolescents, and adults. Psychological and medical correlates of Developmental Trauma Disorder are considered, and directions for future research are discussed.

Cognitive appraisals of disability in persons with traumatic spinal cord injury: a scoping review

STUDY DESIGN

Scoping review.

OBJECTIVES

To describe the meaning of cognitive appraisals, their relation with outcome. measures, and adapted appraisal scales after Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) in the existing literature.

METHODS

This review was performed according to the Arksey and O'Malley (2005) framework that consisted of five steps: setting the review question, searching the literature, selecting and classifying the studies, charting the data, and summarizing the results. Published articles from 1990 to 16 May 2020 related to cognitive appraisal, persons with traumatic SCI (TSCI), and persons older than 18 years were identified by searching by key terms in four databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase).

RESULTS

The included studies (n = 26) were categorized into three categories. Categories focused on the meanings of cognitive appraisals following TSCI (i.e., appraisals being complex and context-related, or in general definition how persons with TSCI interpret their disability and how they evaluate the resources available to respond to it), the relationship between cognitive appraisals and physical/psychological/social/ outcomes, and appraisals of disability (including the use of appraisals as a predictor of subsequent positive or negative consequences).

CONCLUSIONS

The results demonstrated that a cognitive appraisal of TSCI is critical to longer-term rehabilitation outcomes. A combination of physical and psychological-based interventions can help to modify negative or dysfunctional appraisals. Cognitive appraisal in TSCI seems to vary from person to person. To predict it and develop a rehabilitation plan, future research needs to focus on the relationship between cognitive appraisal and person-related factors, including demographic characteristics.

Gendered racial microaggressions predict posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and cognitions among Black women living with HIV

OBJECTIVE

Gendered racial microaggression (GRM) experienced by Black women living with HIV (BWLWH) is a potentially important variable for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology in this population. GRM refers to everyday insults experienced by Black women on the basis of being both Black and female (e.g., comments about Black women's hair and body). We investigated the associations between GRM, race- and HIV-related discrimination, and trauma symptoms among BWLWH and explored whether gendered racial microaggressions contributed uniquely to trauma symptoms above the contribution of race- and HIV-related discrimination.

METHOD

One-hundred BWLWH in the U.S. completed baseline measures on GRM (frequency and appraisal), racial discrimination, HIV-related discrimination, PTSD symptoms, and posttraumatic cognitions.

RESULTS

Hierarchical multiple linear regressions controlling for age, education, and income indicated that higher GRM and HIV-related discrimination predicted higher total PTSD symptoms, and higher GRM and racial discrimination predicted higher posttraumatic cognitions. Hierarchical multiple linear regressions with all predictors entered together revealed that only GRM contributed uniquely to both total PTSD symptoms and total posttraumatic cognitions. Analyses between GRM subscales and subscales of PTSD symptoms and posttraumatic cognitions indicated that GRM about beauty/sexual objectification and the strong Black women stereotype contributed uniquely and in interesting ways to PTSD symptoms and posttraumatic cognitions.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings highlight the importance of addressing intersectional adversities such as GRM for BWLWH, as well as recognizing the role that GRM may play in mental health symptoms for Black women. Future research and intervention efforts aimed at improving the well-being of BWLWH should address GRM. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).