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Clinical presentations in combat veterans diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder
Author(s) -
Elhai Jon D.,
Frueh B. Christopher,
Davis Joanne L.,
Jacobs Gerard A.,
Hamner Mark B.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/jclp.10135
Subject(s) - minnesota multiphasic personality inventory , psychology , veterans affairs , beck depression inventory , clinical psychology , psychiatry , posttraumatic stress , personality test , depression (economics) , cluster (spacecraft) , personality , psychometrics , test validity , social psychology , medicine , anxiety , computer science , economics , macroeconomics , programming language
This article investigated subtypes of symptom patterns among male combat veterans diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through a cluster analysis of their Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory‐2 (MMPI‐2; Butcher, Graham, Ben‐Porath, Tellegen, Dahlstrom, & Kaemmer, 2001) clinical and validity scales. Participants were 126 veterans seekingoutpatient treatment for combat‐related PTSD at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Two well‐fitting MMPI‐2 cluster solutions (a four‐cluster solution and a three‐cluster solution) were evaluated with several statistical methods. A four‐cluster solution was determined to best fit the data. Follow‐up analyses demonstrated between‐cluster differences on MMPI‐2 “fake bad” scales and content scales, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI; Beck, Ward, Mendelson, Mock, & Erbaugh, 1961), Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES; Bernstein & Putnam, 1986), Mississippi Combat PTSD scale (M‐PTSD; Keane, Caddall, & Taylor, 1988), and Clinician‐Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS‐1; Blake et al., 1990). Clusters also were different in disability‐seeking status, employment status, and income. Implications for research and clinical practice using the MMPI‐2 with combat veterans presenting with PTSD are briefly addressed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 59: 385–397, 2003.