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Depressive features in Holocaust survivors with post‐traumatic stress disorder
Author(s) -
Yehuda Rachel,
Kahana Boaz,
Southwick Steven M.,
Giller Earl L.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal of traumatic stress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.259
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1573-6598
pISSN - 0894-9867
DOI - 10.1002/jts.2490070414
Subject(s) - holocaust survivors , traumatic stress , psychology , posttraumatic stress , anxiety disorder , clinical psychology , poison control , suicide prevention , injury prevention , psychiatry , major depressive disorder , occupational safety and health , the holocaust , medicine , medical emergency , anxiety , mood , philosophy , theology , pathology
The present study was designed to explore several aspects of depressive phenomenology, including current symptoms, dependency (anaclitic) and self‐criticism (introjective) themes, and issues of self‐efficacy, in Holocaust survivors with and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The Depressive Subscale of the Symptom Checklist‐90 (SCL‐90) and the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ) were administered to 23 Holocaust survivors and 18 demographically‐matched controls. Holocaust survivors with PTSD scored significantly higher on the SCL‐90 depression scale, and portrayed more self‐criticism on the DEQ, than Holocaust survivors without PTSD and demographically‐matched non‐exposed subjects. The data suggest that depressive symptoms in individuals who have been severely traumatized are more severe when associated with a concurrent PTSD. Furthermore, groups suffering different types of trauma may show similarities in psychological dimensions of depression.