The Relationship Between Perceived Social Support and PTSD Symptoms After Exposure to Physical Assault: An 8 Years Longitudinal Study (original) (raw)
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Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 2011
Poor social support in the aftermath of a traumatic event is a well-established risk factor for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adult trauma survivors. Yet, a great deal about the relationship between social support and PTSD remains poorly understood. In this study, we analyzed data from 102 survivors of a serious motor vehicle accident (MVA) at 4 weeks (Time 1) and 16 weeks (Time 2) post-MVA. We assessed the role of perceived dyadic social support, positive dyadic interaction, and negative dyadic interaction in the development and maintenance of PTSD. In addition, we examined how these social support constructs work together with negative post-trauma cognitions to affect the maintenance of PTSD. Neither perceived social support nor the quality of social interaction (i.e., positive or negative) was associated with PTSD symptom severity at Time 1. However, among those with elevated PTSD symptom severity at Time 1, greater social support and positive social interaction and lower negative social interaction were each associated with reductions in PTSD symptom severity from Time 1 to Time 2. For social support and negative social interaction, this association ceased to be significant when jointly assessed with negative post-trauma cognitions, suggesting that perceived social support and negative dyadic interaction were associated with maintenance of PTSD symptom severity because of their association with negative posttrauma cognitions. These results provide support to models and treatments of PTSD that emphasize the role of negative post-trauma cognitions in maintenance of PTSD.
Journal of traumatic stress, 2016
Social support and coping affect each other after stressful life events, including sexual assault (Taylor & Stanton, 2007). The present study examined the associations among assault-specific support, maladaptive coping, and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) over 3 years in a sample of female sexual assault survivors from a large metropolitan area (N = 1,863). A 3-wave cross-lagged panel model revealed significant weak-to-moderate reciprocal associations between maladaptive coping and PTSS (βs = .09 to .21), significant weak reciprocal associations between turning against social reactions and PTSS (βs = .07 to .10), and inconsistent weak reciprocal associations between maladaptive coping and unsupportive acknowledgment reactions (βs = .06 to .14). We conclude with implications regarding treatment and intervention for survivors and their support networks.
When social support is not enough: Trauma and PTSD symptoms in a risk-sample of adolescents
Child abuse & neglect, 2017
Social support can mitigate the severity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children and adults following traumatic events. However, little is known about the role of social support in high-risk samples of adolescents from the community. The present study examined the relationship between social support and PTSD symptoms in adolescents exposed to traumatic events and childhood adversity, after adjusting for the effects of potential covariates, including sociodemographic factors, previous childhood adversity, level of exposure, comorbid anxiety, depression symptoms, and substance abuse, and coping strategies. The participants of the study were 183 adolescents, mean age of 16 years old (M=15.71, SD=1.31), ranged between 13 and 17 years old, 89 (48.6%) males and 94 (51.4%) females. The results revealed that 26.2% of the sample met the criteria for probable PTSD. Our statistical model explained 64% of the variance in PTSD symptoms, but social support was not significant after ad...
International Journal of Stress Management, 2012
The present study examined how different types of social support differentially moderated the relationship between trauma history characteristics and the development of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms (PTSS) following a motor vehicle accident (MVA). Two hundred thirty-five MVA victims self-reported levels of social support and trauma history, and were evaluated for PTSS 6-and 12-months post-MVA. Results indicated that after controlling for gender, injury severity and income, number of prior trauma types and subjective responses to prior traumatization predicted subsequent PTSS (ps < .05). Appraisal social support was a significant moderator of the total number of types of trauma (appraisal: 6-months β = −.16, p < .05; 12months β = −.17, p < .05) and subjective physical injury during the prior trauma (appraisal: 6months β = −.14, p < .05; 12-months β = −.19, p < .05) in predicting PTSS. Results underscore the importance of examining both trauma history and social support as multi-dimensional constructs and suggest merit to addressing social support in trauma victims with a prior trauma history.
Impact of social support on severity of posttraumatic stress disorder
Acta Medica …, 2010
The last decade of the 20th century, with its well-known events in the former Yugoslavia, resulted in an increased number of cases of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This, however, imposed the need for a better understanding of this disorder for the purpose of ...
Research in Nursing & Health, 2007
We examined social support as a protective factor in the relationship between lifetime exposure to traumatic events and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptomatology among urban women. Seventy-six women who sought care in a trauma center for injuries from physical or sexual violence completed an interview. When tangible support, rather than total social support, and the interaction of tangible support and lifetime trauma were tested, tangible support moderated the relationship between lifetime trauma and PTSD. Given the complex etiology of lifetime trauma, risk for future trauma and the health needs of women who have experienced trauma, a broader range of intervention strategies that include attention to tangible support need to be developed and evaluated. ß
A Public Health Problem: Consequences of Trauma on Health Outcomes and the Role of Social Support
Spotlight on Public Health Research, 2019
Introduction: Extensive research substantiates a negative correlation between stress and health. The implications of traumatic stress are complex, affecting the physical, psychological, physiological, and social health of individuals. The aim of this study was to examine the role of social support in relation to trauma-related health consequences. Methods: Nationally representative data were obtained from the Midlife in the United States study, covering the period 2004-2006, and used in regression models to predict the relationships between types of trauma (adult vs. childhood), measures of social support, and biomarkers of stress reactivity (cortisol, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP), and number of health conditions). Results: The study found that an increase in traumatic experiences during adulthood was associated with a higher logged cortisol level, but social support did not buffer these effects. No significant trends were observed with childhood trauma. Conclusions: Re...
Journal of interpersonal violence, 2017
This study aimed to (a) identify posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) trajectories in a sample of Danish treatment-seeking childhood sexual abuse (CSA) survivors and (b) examine the roles of social support, coping style, and individual PTSD symptom clusters (avoidance, reexperiencing, and hyperarousal) as predictors of the identified trajectories. We utilized a convenience sample of 439 CSA survivors attending personalized psychotherapy treatment in Denmark. Four assessments were conducted on a six monthly basis over a period of 18 months. We used latent class growth analysis (LCGA) to test solutions with one to six classes. Following this, a logistic regression was conducted to examine predictors of the identified trajectories. Results revealed four distinct trajectories which were labeled high PTSD gradual response, high PTSD treatment resistant, moderate PTSD rapid response, and moderate PTSD gradual response. Emotional and detached coping and more severe pretreatment avoidance a...