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Interpersonal Relatedness and Psychological Functioning following Traumatic Brain Injury: Implications for Marital and Family Therapists
Author(s) -
Bay Esther H.,
Blow Adrian J.,
Yan Xie Emily
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of marital and family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.868
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1752-0606
pISSN - 0194-472X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-0606.2011.00231.x
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , psychology , traumatic brain injury , interpersonal communication , clinical psychology , interpersonal relationship , marital status , psychiatry , medicine , social psychology , population , environmental health
Recovery from a mild‐to‐moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a challenging process for injured persons and their families. Guided by attachment theory, we investigated whether relationship conflict, social support, or sense of belonging were associated with psychological functioning. Community‐dwelling persons with TBI ( N = 75) and their relatives/significant others ( N = 74) were surveyed on relationship variables, functional status, and TBI symptom severity. Results from this cross‐sectional study revealed that only sense of belonging was a significant predictor of postinjury psychological functioning, although interpersonal conflict approached significance. No relevant preinjury or injury‐related variables impacted these relationships, except marital status. Our findings suggest that interventions targeting strengthening the injured persons’ sense of belonging and lowering interpersonal conflict may benefit those living with TBI.