Trauma cognitions as intervening variables in the relation of chronic child abuse and thwarted interpersonal needs.

OBJECTIVE: Chronic childhood trauma is consistently linked to negative mental health outcomes in adulthood, but research exploring specific paths of risk remains limited. The aims of the current study were to examine trauma cognitions as intervening variables in the relation of chronic victimization with perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, variables implicated in transdiagnostic risk for psychopathology. METHOD: Semistructured interviews were used to identify university students reporting exposure to systematic physical and/or sexual violence prior to age 18 (n = 101) versus those experiencing other Criterion-A events (n = 254). Trauma cognitions (self, world, and self-blame) and thwarted interpersonal needs (burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness) were measured using scores from the posttrauma cognitions inventory (PTCI) and the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire-10 (INQ-10). Path models in these cross-sectional data were evaluated to assess the indirect effects of chronic abuse on burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness through self, world, and blame cognitions. RESULTS: An initial model indicated associations of chronic victimization on self (p = .044) and world (p = .005) scales of the PTCI and a unique effect of self-beliefs on INQ-10 burdensomeness (p < .001). An indirect effect of abuse on burdensomeness through self-beliefs was supported (p = .050). A second model identified direct effects of PTCI self (p < .001) and world (p < .001) scores on thwarted belongingness as well as an indirect effect of chronic abuse on belongingness through world beliefs (p = .026). CONCLUSIONS: While typically assessed within the context of posttraumatic stress disorder, results suggest that shifts in fundamental beliefs about the self and the world may have more general impacts on perceptions of burdensomeness and belonging in survivors of early, systematic abuse. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Moderating effects of brooding on the link between functional impairment and interpersonal needs in survivors of serious trauma.

OBJECTIVES: Trauma and resulting functional limitations demonstrate associations with perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, factors contributing to elevated risk for suicidal ideation. However, survivors display differential risk in response to impairment, highlighting the need for research on exacerbating factors. The current study examined the impact of brooding on the association of functional impairment with burdensomeness and belongingness among trauma-exposed undergraduates (N = 262). METHOD: Trauma was assessed via clinical interview with questionnaires for study variables. Regression models examined the unique and interactive effects of physical impairment, emotional impairment, and brooding on burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness. RESULTS: An interaction of brooding and impairment due to emotional difficulties was observed for burdensomeness with impairment linked to elevated burdensomeness at high (ß = -0.46; p < 0.001), but not low (ß = -0.07; p = 0.476) brooding. Impairment due to emotional difficulties (ß = -0.38; p < 0.001) and brooding (ß = 0.25; p < 0.001) were associated with belongingness. CONCLUSIONS: Findings identify brooding as a potential target for assessment and intervention in trauma-exposed individuals.

Interpersonal needs and suicide risk: The moderating roles of sex and brooding.

OBJECTIVES: This paper tested two moderators, brooding and participant sex, on the respective relations between thwarted belongingness (TB), perceived burdensomeness (PB), and suicide risk. METHOD: Using a cross-sectional design in a sample of undergraduates (N = 278), two hierarchical regression models examining the three-way interaction between brooding, sex, and either TB or PB on suicide risk were conducted. RESULTS: A significant two-way interaction of brooding and TB was detected, but no moderating effect of sex was observed. There was a significant three-way interaction of brooding, sex, and PB on suicide risk. CONCLUSIONS: High levels of TB and brooding produce increased suicide risk across sexes. The relation between PB and suicide risk is dependent on brooding for females but not males.

Behavioral inhibition and posttrauma symptomatology: Moderating effects of safety behaviors and biological sex.

OBJECTIVES: Behavioral inhibition is a trait-level factor associated with posttraumatic stress. Safety behaviors may impact this link by interfering with anxiety habituation. The current study examined the unique and interactive effects of behavioral inhibition, safety behaviors, and participant sex on posttrauma symptom clusters. METHOD: Participants (N = 131; 75.6% female; M = 19.9 years) completed a trauma history interview and questionnaires assessing behavioral inhibition, safety behavior, and posttrauma symptom severity. RESULTS: Safety behaviors were associated with intrusion (partial correlations [pr] = 0.319), avoidance (pr = 0.274), cognition-mood (pr = 0.274), and arousal-reactivity (pr = 0.538) symptoms (all p ≤ 0.001). An interaction of sex and safety behaviors was noted for avoidance (p = 0.047, pr = -0.159) with a significant relation observed only among women ( p < 0.001, pr = 0.442). Safety behaviors also moderated the link between behavioral inhibition and arousal-reactivity (p = 0.002, pr = 0.272) with inhibition predicting symptoms at high levels of safety behavior (p = 0.024, pr = 0.171). CONCLUSION: Trauma-related safety behaviors are associated with greater posttrauma symptoms and evidence differential effects across individual symptom domains.

Stability of reported trauma over extended intervals: Initial evaluation of an exposure screening protocol.

The reliability and validity of reported exposure to significant trauma is critical to research evaluating outcomes following serious and distressing life events. The current study examined the reliability of reported exposure to disaster, fire, transportation accidents, physical assault, and sexual assault across 5- (N = 251), 12- (N = 223), and 24-month (N = 109) intervals in undergraduates completing a screening measure of probable trauma (N = 3,045). Concordance with later responses to an alternate checklist and events assessed via clinical interview was examined in a subset of participants (N = 274). Five-month reliabilities ranged from good to fair (κ = .40-.71) and were similar to 1-2 week retest estimates in the extant literature. Reliabilities for fire, accidents, and sexual assault remained stable over 12- and 24-month intervals. Coefficients for disaster and physical assault decreased over time. Agreement with the alternate checklist was fair to excellent in those completing the follow-up assessment (κ = .51-.87). Concordance with interview-based trauma was acceptable for accidents (κ = .52) and sexual violence (κ = .82) but poor for disaster, fire, and physical assault (κ = .34-.38). Specificity, negative predictive power, and negative likelihood ratios suggest checklists may hold utility in ruling out previous trauma. Sensitivities indicate that screening instruments may broadly capture individuals experiencing traumatic life events although positive predictive power was limited except in the prediction of traffic accidents and sexual assault. Variability across domains suggests that the properties of checklist measures could be better conceptualized at the level of individual exposure events. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploring the relation between posttraumatic stress disorder and interpersonal outcomes: The role of social acknowledgment and trauma type.

OBJECTIVES: Research demonstrates consistent relations between posttrauma symptoms and interpersonal dysfunction. The current study examined the extent to which perceptions of community rejection account for the relation between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and interpersonal outcomes in students exposed to assaultive and nonassaultive trauma. METHOD: Participants (N = 137; 66.4% female; M = 20 years) completed a trauma history interview, questionnaires assessing symptom severity, social disapproval, and interpersonal outcomes. RESULTS: Assault survivors (n = 83) reported greater symptoms (d = 0.57), disapproval (d = 0.80), and social impairment (d = 0.51) relative to the nonassault group (n = 54). However, regression analyses indicated stronger associations between PTSD and community disapproval in survivors of nonassaultive (ß = 0.69; p < 0.001) versus assaultive (ß = 0.34; p < 0.001) events. Indirect effects of PTSD on perceived support and interpersonal functioning through social disapproval were also larger for nonassaultive versus assaultive groups (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Despite greater dysfunction among assault survivors, perceptions of disapproval may be a more salient factor for interpersonal dynamics following nonassaultive trauma.