Anna McKinnon - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Anna McKinnon

Research paper thumbnail of The Preliminary Development and Validation of a Trauma-Related Safety-Seeking Behavior Measure for Youth: The Child Safety Behavior Scale (CSBS)

Journal of Traumatic Stress

Safety-seeking behaviours (SSBs) may be employed after exposure to a traumatic event to prevent a... more Safety-seeking behaviours (SSBs) may be employed after exposure to a traumatic event to prevent a feared outcome. Cognitive models of post-traumatic stress disorder propose that SSBs contribute to the maintenance of this disorder by preventing disconfirmation of maladaptive beliefs and maintaining a sense of current threat. Recent research has found that

Research paper thumbnail of Health professionals’ attitudes towards AOD-related work: Moving the traditional focus from education and training to organizational culture

Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Research Review: Changes in the prevalence and symptom severity of child posttraumatic stress disorder in the year following trauma - a meta-analytic study

Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, Jan 12, 2016

Understanding the natural course of child and adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has... more Understanding the natural course of child and adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has significant implications for the identification of, and intervention for, at-risk youth. We used a meta-analytic approach to examine longitudinal changes in youth PTSD prevalence and symptoms over the first 12 months posttrauma. We conducted a systematic review to identify longitudinal studies of PTSD in young people (5-18 years old), excluding treatment trials. The search yielded 27 peer-reviewed studies and one unpublished dataset for analysis of pooled prevalence estimates, relative prevalence reduction and standardised mean symptom change. Key moderators were also explored, including age, proportion of boys in the sample, initial prevalence of PTSD and PTSD measurement type. Analyses demonstrated moderate declines in PTSD prevalence and symptom severity over the first 3-6 months posttrauma. From 1 to 6 months posttrauma, the prevalence of PTSD reduced by approximately 50%. Symptoms ...

Research paper thumbnail of An Update on the Clinical Utility of the Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory

Journal of traumatic stress, Jan 18, 2016

The Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI) is a self-report questionnaire tha... more The Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI) is a self-report questionnaire that measures maladaptive cognitions in children and young people following exposure to trauma. In this study, the psychometric properties of the CPTCI were examined in further detail with the objective of furthering its utility as a clinical tool. Specifically, we investigated the CPTCI's discriminant validity, test-retest reliability, and the potential for the development of a short form of the measure. Three samples (London, East Anglia, Australia) of children and young people exposed to trauma (N = 535; 7-17 years old) completed the CPTCI and a structured clinical interview to measure posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms between 1 and 6 months following trauma. Test-retest reliability was investigated in a subsample of 203 cases. The results showed that a score in the range of 46 to 48 on the CPTCI was indicative of clinically significant appraisals as determined by the pre...

Research paper thumbnail of Applying dual process recognition memory models to eyewitness identification

Australian Journal of Psychology

Research paper thumbnail of Newby et al. 2015 CPR Transdiagnostic MA

Transdiagnostic (TD) treatments have large effects on anxiety and depression.

Research paper thumbnail of Non-replication of the association between 5HTTLPR and response to psychological therapy for child anxiety disorders

The British journal of psychiatry : the journal of mental science, Jan 20, 2015

BackgroundWe previously reported an association between 5HTTLPR genotype and outcome following co... more BackgroundWe previously reported an association between 5HTTLPR genotype and outcome following cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in child anxiety (Cohort 1). Children homozygous for the low-expression short-allele showed more positive outcomes. Other similar studies have produced mixed results, with most reporting no association between genotype and CBT outcome.AimsTo replicate the association between 5HTTLPR and CBT outcome in child anxiety from the Genes for Treatment study (GxT Cohort 2, n = 829).MethodLogistic and linear mixed effects models were used to examine the relationship between 5HTTLPR and CBT outcomes. Mega-analyses using both cohorts were performed.ResultsThere was no significant effect of 5HTTLPR on CBT outcomes in Cohort 2. Mega-analyses identified a significant association between 5HTTLPR and remission from all anxiety disorders at follow-up (odds ratio 0.45, P = 0.014), but not primary anxiety disorder outcomes.ConclusionsThe association between 5HTTLPR genotype...

Research paper thumbnail of Conference Scene: The 41st Congress of the European Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies

Research paper thumbnail of Systematic review and meta-analysis of transdiagnostic psychological treatments for anxiety and depressive disorders in adulthood

Clinical Psychology Review, 2015

Transdiagnostic (TD) treatments have large effects on anxiety and depression.

Research paper thumbnail of Clinical Predictors of Response to Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in Pediatric Anxiety Disorders: The Genes for Treatment (GxT) Study

Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Child Data-Driven Processing Questionnaire

Research paper thumbnail of A comparison of MEmory Specificity Training (MEST) to education and support (ES) in the treatment of recurrent depression: study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial

Trials, 2014

Depression is a debilitating mental health problem that tends to run a chronic, recurrent course.... more Depression is a debilitating mental health problem that tends to run a chronic, recurrent course. Even when effectively treated, relapse and recurrence rates remain high. Accordingly, interventions need to focus not only on symptom reduction, but also on reducing the risk of relapse by targeting depression-related disturbances that persist into remission. We are addressing this need by investigating the efficacy, acceptability and feasibility of a MEmory Specificity Training (MEST) programme, which directly targets an enduring cognitive marker of depression - reduced autobiographical memory specificity. Promising pilot data suggest that training memory specificity ameliorates this disturbance and reduces depressive symptoms. A larger, controlled trial is now needed to examine the efficacy of MEST. This trial compares MEST to an education and support (ES) group, with an embedded mechanism study. In a single blind, parallel cluster randomised controlled trial, 60 depressed individuals...

Research paper thumbnail of Attention Bias for Threatening Information in Children Following a Distressing Medical Procedure

Australian Psychologist, 2014

Attention bias is common in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is less studied... more Attention bias is common in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is less studied in children. Children (n = 22) who experienced a potentially distressing procedure in an outpatient clinic (removal of K-wires from orthopaedic fractures) and a group of medically unwell children (illness group; n = 27) were compared with healthy controls (n = 32). Children's baseline level of PTS symptoms were indexed prior to the medical procedure, and again at 1-week follow-up. Immediately after the K-wire removal, children completed a dot probe task using two categories of target words (medical threatening and emotionally threatening). While K-wire children showed an overall bias away from negative words relative to healthy controls, the illness group did not significantly differ from healthy controls. Attention bias in K-wire and illness groups was unrelated to later PTS symptoms.

Research paper thumbnail of Predicting and Treating Posttraumatic Stress in Injured Children

Research paper thumbnail of Health professionals’ attitudes towards AOD-related work: Moving the traditional focus from education and training to organizational culture

Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy, 2009

... Natalie Skinner 1 , Ann M. Roche 1 † , Toby Freeman 1 ... limitations in the alcohol and othe... more ... Natalie Skinner 1 , Ann M. Roche 1 † , Toby Freeman 1 ... limitations in the alcohol and other drug (AOD) knowledge and skills of these frontline workers, and their willingness to respond to AOD issues (Anderson et al., 2003; Arthur, 2001; Kaner, Heather, McAvoy, Lock, & Gilvarry ...

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of data-driven processing on perceptions of memory quality and intrusive symptoms in children following traumatic events

Behaviour Research and Therapy, 2008

Ehlers and Clark [(2000). A cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder. Behaviour Research... more Ehlers and Clark [(2000). A cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 38, 319-345] cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been relatively untested with children. Seventy-five children (7-16 years) were interviewed within 4 weeks of an injury that led to hospital treatment to examine whether peri-traumatic processing strategies (data-driven processing and fear) were associated with perceptions of memory quality and intrusive memories. Perceptions of memory quality mediated the relationship between data-driven processing and intrusive reactions but not avoidance, arousal or depressive reactions. Finally, the relationship between peri-event fear and intrusion reactions was mediated by perceptions of memory quality even after data-driven processing was controlled. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of a cognitive developmental model of PTSD in children.

Research paper thumbnail of Predictors of posttraumatic stress in children following injury: The influence of appraisals, heart rate, and morphine use

Behaviour Research and Therapy, 2010

Prospective studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children that investigate simultan... more Prospective studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children that investigate simultaneously both cognitive and biological or psychophysiological predictors are rare. The present research reports on the impact of cognitive factors (trauma-related appraisals) and biological indicators (heart rate, morphine use) in predicting PTSD and depression symptoms following single-incident trauma. Children and adolescents (N=48) were assessed within 4 weeks of an injury that led to hospital treatment and followed up 6-months later. While morphine did not predict initial PTSD severity, it was associated with lower levels of PTSD at follow-up. Reductions in PTSD symptoms (change scores) between assessments were similarly associated with morphine dosage. Trauma-related appraisals also contributed to PTSD and depression symptom severity. While slightly different patterns of results were obtained depending on whether static or change scores were examined, as a whole the study adds to a growing literature that morphine has the potential to reduce PTSD symptoms severity. Likewise the relationship between unhelpful trauma appraisals and posttrauma psychopathology was replicated.

Research paper thumbnail of Phenomenological reports diagnose accuracy of eyewitness identification decisions

Acta Psychologica, 2010

This study investigated whether measuring the phenomenology of eyewitness identification decision... more This study investigated whether measuring the phenomenology of eyewitness identification decisions aids evaluation of their accuracy. Witnesses (N=502) viewed a simulated crime and attempted to identify two targets from lineups. A divided attention manipulation during encoding reduced the rate of remember (R) correct identifications, but not the rates of R foil identifications or know (K) judgments in the absence of recollection (i.e., K/[1-R]). Both RK judgments and recollection ratings (a novel measure of graded recollection) distinguished correct from incorrect positive identifications. However, only recollection ratings improved accuracy evaluation after identification confidence was taken into account. These results provide evidence that RK judgments for identification decisions function in a similar way as for recognition decisions; are consistent with the notion of graded recollection; and indicate that measures of phenomenology can enhance the evaluation of identification accuracy.

Research paper thumbnail of Trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy versus treatment as usual for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in young children aged 3 to 8 years: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Trials, 2015

Background: Following horrific or life-threatening events approximately 10 to 15% of young childr... more Background: Following horrific or life-threatening events approximately 10 to 15% of young children develop post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The symptoms of this disorder are distressing -nightmares, flashbacks, anger outbursts and disturbed play. These symptoms cause major disruption to a child's functioning and, if left untreated, can persist for many years. As yet, there are no established empirically-validated treatments for PTSD in young children. Trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy (TF-CBT) is a psychological intervention that is effective in treating the disorder in older children (8 to 12 years), adolescents and adults. This study examines TF-CBT adapted for children aged between 3 and 8 years.

Research paper thumbnail of The Preliminary Development and Validation of a Trauma-Related Safety-Seeking Behavior Measure for Youth: The Child Safety Behavior Scale (CSBS)

Journal of Traumatic Stress

Safety-seeking behaviours (SSBs) may be employed after exposure to a traumatic event to prevent a... more Safety-seeking behaviours (SSBs) may be employed after exposure to a traumatic event to prevent a feared outcome. Cognitive models of post-traumatic stress disorder propose that SSBs contribute to the maintenance of this disorder by preventing disconfirmation of maladaptive beliefs and maintaining a sense of current threat. Recent research has found that

Research paper thumbnail of Health professionals’ attitudes towards AOD-related work: Moving the traditional focus from education and training to organizational culture

Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy, 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Research Review: Changes in the prevalence and symptom severity of child posttraumatic stress disorder in the year following trauma - a meta-analytic study

Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, Jan 12, 2016

Understanding the natural course of child and adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has... more Understanding the natural course of child and adolescent posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has significant implications for the identification of, and intervention for, at-risk youth. We used a meta-analytic approach to examine longitudinal changes in youth PTSD prevalence and symptoms over the first 12 months posttrauma. We conducted a systematic review to identify longitudinal studies of PTSD in young people (5-18 years old), excluding treatment trials. The search yielded 27 peer-reviewed studies and one unpublished dataset for analysis of pooled prevalence estimates, relative prevalence reduction and standardised mean symptom change. Key moderators were also explored, including age, proportion of boys in the sample, initial prevalence of PTSD and PTSD measurement type. Analyses demonstrated moderate declines in PTSD prevalence and symptom severity over the first 3-6 months posttrauma. From 1 to 6 months posttrauma, the prevalence of PTSD reduced by approximately 50%. Symptoms ...

Research paper thumbnail of An Update on the Clinical Utility of the Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory

Journal of traumatic stress, Jan 18, 2016

The Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI) is a self-report questionnaire tha... more The Children's Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI) is a self-report questionnaire that measures maladaptive cognitions in children and young people following exposure to trauma. In this study, the psychometric properties of the CPTCI were examined in further detail with the objective of furthering its utility as a clinical tool. Specifically, we investigated the CPTCI's discriminant validity, test-retest reliability, and the potential for the development of a short form of the measure. Three samples (London, East Anglia, Australia) of children and young people exposed to trauma (N = 535; 7-17 years old) completed the CPTCI and a structured clinical interview to measure posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms between 1 and 6 months following trauma. Test-retest reliability was investigated in a subsample of 203 cases. The results showed that a score in the range of 46 to 48 on the CPTCI was indicative of clinically significant appraisals as determined by the pre...

Research paper thumbnail of Applying dual process recognition memory models to eyewitness identification

Australian Journal of Psychology

Research paper thumbnail of Newby et al. 2015 CPR Transdiagnostic MA

Transdiagnostic (TD) treatments have large effects on anxiety and depression.

Research paper thumbnail of Non-replication of the association between 5HTTLPR and response to psychological therapy for child anxiety disorders

The British journal of psychiatry : the journal of mental science, Jan 20, 2015

BackgroundWe previously reported an association between 5HTTLPR genotype and outcome following co... more BackgroundWe previously reported an association between 5HTTLPR genotype and outcome following cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in child anxiety (Cohort 1). Children homozygous for the low-expression short-allele showed more positive outcomes. Other similar studies have produced mixed results, with most reporting no association between genotype and CBT outcome.AimsTo replicate the association between 5HTTLPR and CBT outcome in child anxiety from the Genes for Treatment study (GxT Cohort 2, n = 829).MethodLogistic and linear mixed effects models were used to examine the relationship between 5HTTLPR and CBT outcomes. Mega-analyses using both cohorts were performed.ResultsThere was no significant effect of 5HTTLPR on CBT outcomes in Cohort 2. Mega-analyses identified a significant association between 5HTTLPR and remission from all anxiety disorders at follow-up (odds ratio 0.45, P = 0.014), but not primary anxiety disorder outcomes.ConclusionsThe association between 5HTTLPR genotype...

Research paper thumbnail of Conference Scene: The 41st Congress of the European Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies

Research paper thumbnail of Systematic review and meta-analysis of transdiagnostic psychological treatments for anxiety and depressive disorders in adulthood

Clinical Psychology Review, 2015

Transdiagnostic (TD) treatments have large effects on anxiety and depression.

Research paper thumbnail of Clinical Predictors of Response to Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in Pediatric Anxiety Disorders: The Genes for Treatment (GxT) Study

Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Child Data-Driven Processing Questionnaire

Research paper thumbnail of A comparison of MEmory Specificity Training (MEST) to education and support (ES) in the treatment of recurrent depression: study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial

Trials, 2014

Depression is a debilitating mental health problem that tends to run a chronic, recurrent course.... more Depression is a debilitating mental health problem that tends to run a chronic, recurrent course. Even when effectively treated, relapse and recurrence rates remain high. Accordingly, interventions need to focus not only on symptom reduction, but also on reducing the risk of relapse by targeting depression-related disturbances that persist into remission. We are addressing this need by investigating the efficacy, acceptability and feasibility of a MEmory Specificity Training (MEST) programme, which directly targets an enduring cognitive marker of depression - reduced autobiographical memory specificity. Promising pilot data suggest that training memory specificity ameliorates this disturbance and reduces depressive symptoms. A larger, controlled trial is now needed to examine the efficacy of MEST. This trial compares MEST to an education and support (ES) group, with an embedded mechanism study. In a single blind, parallel cluster randomised controlled trial, 60 depressed individuals...

Research paper thumbnail of Attention Bias for Threatening Information in Children Following a Distressing Medical Procedure

Australian Psychologist, 2014

Attention bias is common in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is less studied... more Attention bias is common in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is less studied in children. Children (n = 22) who experienced a potentially distressing procedure in an outpatient clinic (removal of K-wires from orthopaedic fractures) and a group of medically unwell children (illness group; n = 27) were compared with healthy controls (n = 32). Children's baseline level of PTS symptoms were indexed prior to the medical procedure, and again at 1-week follow-up. Immediately after the K-wire removal, children completed a dot probe task using two categories of target words (medical threatening and emotionally threatening). While K-wire children showed an overall bias away from negative words relative to healthy controls, the illness group did not significantly differ from healthy controls. Attention bias in K-wire and illness groups was unrelated to later PTS symptoms.

Research paper thumbnail of Predicting and Treating Posttraumatic Stress in Injured Children

Research paper thumbnail of Health professionals’ attitudes towards AOD-related work: Moving the traditional focus from education and training to organizational culture

Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy, 2009

... Natalie Skinner 1 , Ann M. Roche 1 † , Toby Freeman 1 ... limitations in the alcohol and othe... more ... Natalie Skinner 1 , Ann M. Roche 1 † , Toby Freeman 1 ... limitations in the alcohol and other drug (AOD) knowledge and skills of these frontline workers, and their willingness to respond to AOD issues (Anderson et al., 2003; Arthur, 2001; Kaner, Heather, McAvoy, Lock, & Gilvarry ...

Research paper thumbnail of The influence of data-driven processing on perceptions of memory quality and intrusive symptoms in children following traumatic events

Behaviour Research and Therapy, 2008

Ehlers and Clark [(2000). A cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder. Behaviour Research... more Ehlers and Clark [(2000). A cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 38, 319-345] cognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been relatively untested with children. Seventy-five children (7-16 years) were interviewed within 4 weeks of an injury that led to hospital treatment to examine whether peri-traumatic processing strategies (data-driven processing and fear) were associated with perceptions of memory quality and intrusive memories. Perceptions of memory quality mediated the relationship between data-driven processing and intrusive reactions but not avoidance, arousal or depressive reactions. Finally, the relationship between peri-event fear and intrusion reactions was mediated by perceptions of memory quality even after data-driven processing was controlled. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of a cognitive developmental model of PTSD in children.

Research paper thumbnail of Predictors of posttraumatic stress in children following injury: The influence of appraisals, heart rate, and morphine use

Behaviour Research and Therapy, 2010

Prospective studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children that investigate simultan... more Prospective studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children that investigate simultaneously both cognitive and biological or psychophysiological predictors are rare. The present research reports on the impact of cognitive factors (trauma-related appraisals) and biological indicators (heart rate, morphine use) in predicting PTSD and depression symptoms following single-incident trauma. Children and adolescents (N=48) were assessed within 4 weeks of an injury that led to hospital treatment and followed up 6-months later. While morphine did not predict initial PTSD severity, it was associated with lower levels of PTSD at follow-up. Reductions in PTSD symptoms (change scores) between assessments were similarly associated with morphine dosage. Trauma-related appraisals also contributed to PTSD and depression symptom severity. While slightly different patterns of results were obtained depending on whether static or change scores were examined, as a whole the study adds to a growing literature that morphine has the potential to reduce PTSD symptoms severity. Likewise the relationship between unhelpful trauma appraisals and posttrauma psychopathology was replicated.

Research paper thumbnail of Phenomenological reports diagnose accuracy of eyewitness identification decisions

Acta Psychologica, 2010

This study investigated whether measuring the phenomenology of eyewitness identification decision... more This study investigated whether measuring the phenomenology of eyewitness identification decisions aids evaluation of their accuracy. Witnesses (N=502) viewed a simulated crime and attempted to identify two targets from lineups. A divided attention manipulation during encoding reduced the rate of remember (R) correct identifications, but not the rates of R foil identifications or know (K) judgments in the absence of recollection (i.e., K/[1-R]). Both RK judgments and recollection ratings (a novel measure of graded recollection) distinguished correct from incorrect positive identifications. However, only recollection ratings improved accuracy evaluation after identification confidence was taken into account. These results provide evidence that RK judgments for identification decisions function in a similar way as for recognition decisions; are consistent with the notion of graded recollection; and indicate that measures of phenomenology can enhance the evaluation of identification accuracy.

Research paper thumbnail of Trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy versus treatment as usual for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in young children aged 3 to 8 years: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Trials, 2015

Background: Following horrific or life-threatening events approximately 10 to 15% of young childr... more Background: Following horrific or life-threatening events approximately 10 to 15% of young children develop post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The symptoms of this disorder are distressing -nightmares, flashbacks, anger outbursts and disturbed play. These symptoms cause major disruption to a child's functioning and, if left untreated, can persist for many years. As yet, there are no established empirically-validated treatments for PTSD in young children. Trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy (TF-CBT) is a psychological intervention that is effective in treating the disorder in older children (8 to 12 years), adolescents and adults. This study examines TF-CBT adapted for children aged between 3 and 8 years.