A Case Study of Cognitive Processing Therapy for a Military Medic With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Cognitive processing therapy (CPT) is an effective treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the active duty and veteran population. This case study provides a thorough example of the use of this therapeutic modality with an active duty military service member who was exposed to several traumatic events. Over the course of 13 sessions, "Master Sergeant Smith," a middle-aged, White male, made significant progress on his treatment plan goals and reductions in PTSD symptoms. This case study describes the theoretical and research basis for treatment and course of treatment and illustrates the use of CPT in an outpatient setting while describing important areas of focus and how to overcome clinical challenges.

Adolescent identity development and distress in a clinical sample.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of identity development and identity distress to psychological adjustment within adolescents affected by psychological problems. METHOD: Participants included 88 adolescents (43.2% female) ranging from 11 to 20 years of age who were receiving services from a community mental health center. RESULTS: A high proportion of the participants (22.7%) met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition Text Revision criteria for Identity Problem. Regression analyses found psychopathology symptom score was associated with identity distress, identity exploration, and identity commitment, while identity distress was only related to psychopathology symptom score and not the other two identity variables. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents with a clinical diagnosis may report significant levels of identity distress. Given that the relationship between psychopathology and identity distress may be reciprocal, assessing for identity issues might be prudent when conducting clinical diagnostic interviews and useful in treatment planning.

The relationships among caregiver and adolescent identity status, identity distress and psychological adjustment.

The present study addresses the relationships of caregiver identity status on their adolescent children's identity distress and psychological symptom severity among a sample of adolescents (age 12-19) in treatment at a community mental health center (N = 60 caregiver-child dyads). A significant proportion of caregivers (10%) and their adolescent children (21.7%) met DSM-IV criteria for Identity Problem. Caregiver identity commitment, significantly predicted adolescent identity distress over and above the adolescents' identity variables, while caregiver identity exploration significantly predicted adolescent psychological symptom severity. These findings and implications are discussed in further detail.