Paths from core belief disruption to post-traumatic stress symptoms and post-traumatic growth among Korean undergraduates: The mediating role of rumination

The post-traumatic growth (PTG) model proposes that cognitive processing is a key mechanism that leads to growth in the aftermath of traumatic events. Building upon the PTG model, the present study examined the paths from the disruption of core beliefs to post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and PTG via intrusive and deliberate rumination. The sample includes 370 Korean undergraduate students who reported at least one highly stressful experience in their lifetime. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that disruption of core beliefs predicted PTG both directly and indirectly through multiple pathways: via deliberate rumination, intrusive rumination, and the path from intrusive to deliberate rumination. The disruption of core beliefs positively predicted PTSS only through intrusive rumination. No bivariate relationship was found between PTSS and PTG. These findings support the different roles of intrusive rumination and deliberate rumination in mediating the paths from disruption of core beliefs to PTSS and PTG. Implications and limitations of this study were discussed.     

Future orientation,identity and intimacy: Their relations in emerging adulthood

This study examined the relationships between future orientation and identity and intimacy among Israeli emerging adults. Future orientation was defined in terms of behavioural (exploration, commitment) and motivational variables (value, expectance, and control) as they apply to two domains representing major adult tasks: career and family. Results showed that both career and family future orientation variables were related to identity and intimacy, with greater differences between the exploration and commitment links to identity and intimacy than among the motivational variables links to identity and intimacy. Specifically, although identity and intimacy were intercorrelated, commitment was related to identity and exploration was related to intimacy, while value and expectance (i.e., confidence about materialization of hopes and plans) were related to both. However, by controlling for the effect of identity, a negative relationship between commitment to career and intimacy was unmasked.     

Research digest: post-traumatic stress disorder

The onset of weaning is often described as an important early milestone, but it creates considerable emotional turbulence in the motherinfant relationship. The interruption of the breast-feeding relationship, whether gradual or sudden, creates a very special kind of agony for both the mother and baby, especially when a good trusting relationship with the breast has been found. This paper explores some of the hurts and sacrifices made on both sides during weaning, and looks at some of the subtle reactions to mutual feelings of rejection at this time. It also describes some of the difficulties that arise when the work of weaning is compromised by certain anxieties in the feeding relationship. Extracts from several psychoanalytical infant observations are used both to illustrate and to discuss these themes.     

HIV infection associated post-traumatic stress disorder and post-traumatic growth--a systematic review

The phenomenon of post-traumatic stress has been well documented in the literature as a lasting mental health condition associated with exposure to traumatic life events. The diagnosis and experience of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease may be such a trauma. On the other hand, the phenomenon of post-traumatic growth (PTG) has been described, whereby people show positive mental health growth in the face of such trauma. This systematic review was set out to explore post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and PTG in people with HIV to monitor prevalence, measurement and efficacy of interventions to reduce stress and/or promote growth. Standardised review techniques were used to track reports on both PTSD and PTG. A total of 206 papers were retrieved from the PTSD and HIV searches, and 13 from the PTG and HIV searches. After reviewing the papers for inclusion according to adequacy and relevance criteria and to remove duplicates, 33 PTSD papers and three PTG were available for full coding. Prevalence of PTSD in HIV ranged from 5% to 74%, which were much greater than the 7-10% in the general population. Seven studies showed a relation between trauma and PTSD, while six showed a link between PTSD diagnosis and reduced antiretroviral treatment adherence. Women were more likely to be diagnosed with PTSD. Only three intervention reports were identified that fitted our inclusion criteria. All of these reported on psychological interventions for HIV+?individuals with trauma. The interventions utilised HIV education, training in coping techniques and support groups. Only coping interventions were shown to be effective. PTG was under researched but showed a promising avenue of study. There needs to be harmonised measurement and the evidence base would need strengthening in order to build on the understanding of the impact of PTSD and PTG over the course of HIV disease. There is good evidence to associate HIV diagnosis and experiences during the course of illness as traumatic. PTSD has been shown to be prevalent and there seems to be good evidence to incorporate standardised measures to track the course of the disorder. There is extremely limited evidence that interventions may affect the course of symptom experience. The evidence and insight into PTG show promise but is currently inadequate.     

The centrality of event scale: a measure of integrating a trauma into one's identity and its relation to post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms

We introduce a new scale that measures how central an event is to a person's identity and life story. For the most stressful or traumatic event in a person's life, the full 20-item Centrality of Event Scale (CES) and the short 7-item scale are reliable (alpha's of .94 and .88, respectively) in a sample of 707 undergraduates. The scale correlates .38 with PTSD symptom severity and .23 with depression. The present findings are discussed in relation to previous work on individual differences related to PTSD symptoms. Possible connections between the CES and measures of maladaptive attributions and rumination are considered along with suggestions for future research.     

Understanding cognitive,affective, and intimacy deficits in sexual offenders: A developmental perspective

Factors, such as intimacy deficits, problems empathizing with victims, and cognitive distortions, have all been associated with the genesis of sexual abuse. Importantly, they all point to a lack of awareness of other peoples' beliefs, desires, perspectives, and needs. We argue that sexual offenders' problems in these domains can be viewed as partially arising from deficits in one central mechanism: the ability to infer mental states. Following a review of the above three areas, we discuss the developmental literature on children's theory of mind and develop a model informed by this work. We apply this model to sexual offenders and discuss its research and clinical implications.     

Interapy: treatment of post-traumatic stress via the internet

This paper describes the theoretical background and procedures (including psycho-education, screening, treatment protocol and outcome measurement) involved in a protocol-driven internet treatment of post-traumatic stress and grief in a group of people who have suffered from mild to relatively severe trauma. The paper examines the results of 3 outcome and process studies, which were carried out initially in a student population and subsequently in the general population of highly traumatized people. In the latter study, participants in the experimental condition (n = 69) improved significantly more than participants in the waiting list control condition (n = 32), with respect to trauma-related symptoms and general psychopathology. The effect sizes were large. More than 50% of the participants treated showed reliable change and clinically significant improvement after treatment for avoidance and depression. Treatment proved most beneficial for participants who had suffered from intentional trauma and those who had not previously discussed the traumatic events with significant others. Content analysis of the publications indicates a remarkable increase in cognitive coping during treatment. The possibilities for future research into internet-driven treatment of post-traumatic stress symptomatology are discussed, including the proposal to study the effects of sending a final written letter to a significant other person.     

Cognitive therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder: development and evaluation

The paper describes the development of a cognitive therapy (CT) program for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that is based on a recent cognitive model (Behav. Res. Therapy 38 (2000) 319). In a consecutive case series, 20 PTSD patients treated with CT showed highly significant improvement in symptoms of PTSD, depression and anxiety. A subsequent randomized controlled trial compared CT (N = 14) and a 3-month waitlist condition (WL, N = 14). CT led to large reductions in PTSD symptoms, disability, depression and anxiety, whereas the waitlist group did not improve. In both studies, treatment gains were well maintained at 6-month follow-up. CT was highly acceptable, with an overall dropout rate of only 3%. The intent-to-treat effect sizes for the degree of change in PTSD symptoms from pre to post-treatment were 2.70-2.82 (self-report), and 2.07 (assessor-rated). The controlled effect sizes for CT versus WL post-treatment scores were 2.25 (self-report) and 2.18 (assessor-rated). As predicted by the cognitive model, good treatment outcome was related to greater changes in dysfunctional post-traumatic cognitions. Patient characteristics such as comorbidity, type of trauma, history of previous trauma, or time since the traumatic event did not predict treatment response, however, low educational attainment and low socioeconomic status were related to better outcome.     

Sexually abused children and post-traumatic stress disorder

Sexually abused children often develop post-traumatic stress disorder, a distressing and debilitating condition that is typically unresponsive to non-directive counselling. Empirically supported abuse-confronting, structured interventions are urgently required for use by counselling psychologists responsible for the management of this challenging clinical population. Given the success of cognitive-behavioural interventions with adult trauma victims, it has been suggested that this treatment approach be applied to sexually abused children. This paper presents a cognitive-behavioural treatment framework comprising two levels of intervention: child therapy and parent training. We selectively review emerging empirical support for the efficacy and acceptability of this treatment approach.     

Dual trajectories of maternal parenting stress and marital intimacy during toddlerhood

Parenting stress disrupts both parenting and child adjustment. Marital intimacy is often conceptualized as a source of support that may reduce parenting stress. We examined the association between mothers' trajectories of parenting stress and marital intimacy when their children were 15–36 month old. We also explored whether maternal depressive symptoms at 15 months accounted for individual differences concurrently or in the trajectories of parenting stress and marital intimacy. Mothers' marital intimacy was negatively associated with their concurrent levels of parenting stress and declines in parenting stress over time. Depressive symptoms were associated with 15‐month parenting stress and marital intimacy. Overall, intimacy within the marriage appears to be a resource that reduces mothers' parenting stress during the toddler years     

The relationship between identity, intimacy, and midlife well-being: findings from the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study

The present study used longitudinal data on 182 adults between the ages of 20 and 54 (104 men, 78 women) from the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study (RALS), assessed on four occasions, to test the hypothesis that identity and intimacy during the course of early and middle adulthood predict well-being at midlife. A cross-lagged panel model was estimated yielding the following findings: (a) Scores on both scales during the college years predicted midlife satisfaction-intimacy directly, and identity through the course of development from ages 20 to 54; moreover, identity in midlife, but not intimacy, was significantly linked with well-being at this same point in time; and (b) identity and intimacy unexpectedly did not predict one another over time, having been controlled for factor stability in identity and intimacy over time. The findings are discussed in terms of Erikson's psychosocial theory of development and the developmental moments and historical cohorts that characterize the present sample.     

From prematurity to parenting stress: The mediating role of perinatal post-traumatic stress disorder

Preterm delivery may lead to the emergence of symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress disorder (PTSD), which may, in turn, affect the quality of the mother-child relationship. The aim of this study is to shed light on the development of parenting stress in mothers of preterm and full-term children. It is hypothesized that PTSD symptoms mediate the relationship between preterm/full-term birth and the levels of parenting stress. Perinatal PTSD, parenting stress and social support were assessed in 156 mothers of full-term children and 87 mothers of preterm children. Mothers of preterm children experienced more post-traumatic stress and parenting stress than mothers of full-term children. However, the relationship between preterm delivery and subsequent levels of parenting stress was mediated by PTSD symptoms. These findings suggest that the maternal perception of childbirth as a traumatic experience and the subsequent development of PTSD symptoms are pivotal in the emergence of parenting stress.     

The internal environment of knowledge claims: One aspect of the knowledge-society connection

In the sociology of knowledge, the relationship between society and knowledge —or rather what separates them — remains an unsolved problem. A critical analysis of various solutions that we must look for to this problem suggests the plausibility of a passage between social groups, styles of argumentation and objects of knowledge. An empirical model of decision displacements is proposed on the basis of a corpus of texts and of observations derived from concrete analysis of a laboratory situation.     

Uncontrollability and unpredictability in post-traumatic stress disorder: an animal model.

The disturbances observed in animals subjected to unpredictable and uncontrollable aversive events resemble post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and thus may constitute an animal model of this disorder. It is argued that the similarity between animals' symptoms and those of trauma victims may reflect common etiological factors. Relevant experiments in which animals exhibit generalized fear and arousal, discrete fear of a conditioned stimulus (CS), analgesia, and avoidance are reviewed with the view that these manifestations may be analogous to the PTSD symptom clusters of persistent arousal, reexperiencing, numbing, and avoidance, respectively. Finally, animal paradigms are suggested to test the validity of the model and specific hypotheses are derived from the animal literature regarding trauma variables that are predictive of particular PTSD symptom clusters.     

When curiosity breeds intimacy: taking advantage of intimacy opportunities and transforming boring conversations

Curious people seek knowledge and new experiences. In 3 studies, we examined whether, when, and how curiosity contributes to positive social outcomes between unacquainted strangers. Study 1 (98 college students) showed that curious people expect to generate closeness during intimate conversations but not during small talk; less curious people anticipated poor outcomes in both situations. We hypothesized that curious people underestimate their ability to bond with unacquainted strangers during mundane conversations. Studies 2 (90 college students) and 3 (106 college students) showed that curious people felt close to partners during intimate and small-talk conversations; less curious people only felt close when the situation offered relationship-building exercises. Surprise at the pleasure felt during this novel, uncertain situation partially mediated the benefits linked to curiosity. We found evidence of slight asymmetry between self and partner reactions. Results could not be attributed to physical attraction or positive affect. Collectively, results suggest that positive social interactions benefit from an open and curious mind-set.     

Understanding and coping with immigration detention: Social identity as cure and curse

Over 29,000 foreign nationals are detained yearly in British Immigration Removal Centres for undefined periods. This study investigated the role played by social identities in the way detainees are affected by, make sense of, and deal with detention. An opportunity sample of 40 detainees was interviewed on topics including support, identity, and well-being, and data were analysed using theoretical thematic analysis. Participants struggled with loss of social networks, loss of rights, loss of agency, and joining a stigmatised group. Social identities guided exchange of support, aided meaning-making, and mitigated distrust, serving as ‘Social Cures’. However, shared identities could also be sources of burden, ostracism, and distress, serving as ‘Social Curses’. Inability to maintain existing identities or create new ones fuelled feelings of isolation. Participants also reported rejection/avoidance of social identities to maximise their benefits. This study is the first to apply the Social Identity Approach to the experience of immigration detention.