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Methods: Adults seeking behavioral health or medical treatment (N = 158) were recruited from a community healthcare agency and a residential support program in the southeastern United States.Results: Individuals who reported interpersonal trauma had significantly higher total PTS severity and symptom clusters. No significant difference was found in perceived PTG based on trauma type. No significant curvilinear relationship between PTS and perceived PTG was found. A significant negative linear relationship was observed between PTS and perceived PTG for non-interpersonal trauma, but not interpersonal trauma. Conclusion:Trauma type may influence the PTS and perceived PTG relationship and, while associated with PTS, seems less important to reporting of perceived PTG.

Although rurality is often treated as an aspect of diversity, researchers disagree regarding whether the traditional rural values of self-reliance, distrust of outsiders, religiosity, centrality of family, and fatalism continue to differentiate rural versus urban undergraduates. The present study examined 1) whether differences in these values exist between rural and urban college students in the United States and 2) whether these rural values might mediate the association between geographic remoteness and posttraumatic stress symptom (PTSS) severity. College undergraduates in the United States who reported experiencing traumatic and/or stressful events (N = 213) completed measures of these constructs through an online survey. T-test results indicated that rural respondents had significantly higher levels of PTSS severity and distrust of outsiders and significantly lower levels of religiosity when compared with urban participants. After controlling for gender, distrust of outsiders and religiosity also emerged as significant mediators of the relationship between geographic remoteness and PTSS severity. Thus, despite research that highlights differences based on geographic location, similarities and differences exist for rural and urban undergraduates in the United States with regard to traditionally rural values. For rural undergraduate clients presenting with trauma symptoms, our results suggest that building trust and religious and/or spiritual self-care may be particularly critical.

Objective: Rural areas in the Southern United States are characterized by certain cultural values that may delay or prevent mental health service utilization. The present study examined a four-stage chain of serial mediation where higher levels of general self-reliance would be related to greater levels of public stigma, which would in turn be related to higher levels of self-stigma, followed by greater self-reliance about managing mental health problems, and finally, more negative attitudes toward seeking help from psychologists.Method: Community members who lived in rural counties in the Southern United States (N = 783) completed measures of these constructs online.Results: Mediation analyses supported a direct association between general self-reliance and attitudes toward helpseeking that was explained in serial by higher levels of public stigma, self-stigma, and mental health self-reliance.Conclusions: Clinical implications for rural practitioners are suggested including instilling policy changes, increasing provider visibility, and addressing barriers in therapy.

Objective After combat, veterans may experience mental health symptomology and attempt to make meaning from their experiences. The present study qualitatively examined the mental health effects of deployment and meaning‐making among Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) veterans. Method OIF/OEF veterans who were exposed to combat (N = 14) participated in semi‐structured interviews to assess how their perspectives had changed post‐deployment. Most participants (86%) were male, with a mean age of 30. Results Veterans described issues post‐combat that caused psychological distress or promoted distancing from others. Veterans also discussed factors that could promote or hinder meaning‐making, including perceptions of growth, changed global beliefs, and disillusionment. Finally, veterans described psychological reactions to death, which could be related to moral injury. Conclusion Mental health concerns, meaning‐making, and consideration of mortality appear to characterize veterans’ experiences post‐deployment. These constructs may be important for clinicians to consider when working with OIF/OEF veterans.