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The Influences of Event Centrality in Memory Models of PTSD
Author(s) -
Fitzgerald Joseph M.,
Berntsen Dorthe,
Broadbridge Carissa L.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
applied cognitive psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.719
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1099-0720
pISSN - 0888-4080
DOI - 10.1002/acp.3160
Subject(s) - psychology , centrality , personality , situational ethics , population , interpersonal communication , event (particle physics) , clinical psychology , developmental psychology , social psychology , medicine , physics , mathematics , environmental health , combinatorics , quantum mechanics
Summary The consequences of events for well‐being are influenced by individual and situational factors that are often studied in isolation. In the research reported here, a large ( N = 489) nonclinical sample of college students reported their most traumatic event, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, depressive symptoms, personality traits, and characteristics of their event memory. This study achieved three major goals. First, we identified the highest types of stress event types in this population as disruptions of interpersonal relationships, homicides/assaults on others, and assaults/accidents involving themselves. Second, we established that the effects of memory characteristics such as vividness, belief, and impact on PTSD symptoms are mediated by the centrality of the event to identity. Third, we affirmed the hypothesis that a structural model of the influence of personality factors on PTSD symptoms has a higher level of concurrent validity if event centrality is included as a mediator of those influences. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.