Exposure, threat appraisal, and lost confidence as predictors of PTSD symptoms following September 11, 2001.

Abstract

Six months after September 11, 2001 (9/11), 124 New York City workers participated in a self-report study of symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although direct exposure to the terrorist attacks of 9/11 was limited, estimates of the prevalence of current PTSD in this mostly ethnic minority population ranged from 7.8% to 21.2%, as measured by the PTSD Checklist (F. W. Weathers, B. T. Litz, D. S. Herman, J. A. Huska, & T. M. Keane, 1993). Consistent with the study hypotheses, direct exposure to the attacks of 9/11, worries about future terrorist attacks (threat appraisal), and reduced confidence in self after 9/11 each predicted symptoms of PTSD, even after controlling for symptoms of anxiety and depression. These results support the idea that a traumatic event's meaning is associated with PTSD symptoms. Gender was not a significant predictor of symptoms, once other demographic variables were controlled. Most respondents who met the criteria for current PTSD had not sought therapy or counseling.

Mental Health Consequences of September 11: A Five-Year Review of the Behavioral Sciences Literature

“…A total of 124 NYC staff members working in after-school programs were assessed six months after the attacks to determine the correlation between direct exposure and PTSD symptoms. A large percentage of female participants in this study (Piotrkowski and Brannen 2002) experienced significantly more PTSD symptoms than men. When all variables were considered, gender was not an important predictor of PTSD.…”

Social and occupational factors associated with psychological wellbeing among occupational groups affected by disaster: a systematic review

“…Financial loss was associated with psychological distress in factory workers following earthquakes (Bland et al, 2005). Losing confidence in oneself (which was most strongly predicted by lower household income) was associated with PTSD symptoms in staff members of after-school programs (Piotrkowski & Brannen, 2002). Having one's work impacted by the disaster was associated with post-traumatic stress symptoms in ministerial employees (Blix et al, 2013).…”

“…In a study of school staff following the September 11 th attacks (Piotrkowski & Brannen, 2002), appraised threat was uniquely associated with symptoms of PTSD -13 those who appraised the threat of future attacks as greater tended to report more PTSD symptoms.…”

“…Studies showed that greater extent of exposure predicted PTSD symptoms (Bland et al, 2005;DiGrande et al, 2011;Grieger et al, 2005;North et al, 2011;Osinubi et al, 2008;Piotrkowski & Brannen, 2002;Van der Velden et al, 2014;Weisaeth, 1989); depression (Grieger et al, 2005); peri-traumatic distress (Shigemura et al, 2014); general psychiatric symptoms (Holen, 1991;Kosheyev et al, 1993;Weidmann et al, 2008); distress (Grieger et al, 2005); agoraphobia (Van der Velden et al, 2014); and greater sick leave (Holen, 1991). However higher levels of traumatic exposure were also associated with increased post-traumatic growth in one study of employees of the Norwegian ministries following a bombing (Blix et al, 2013).…”

Animal models for posttraumatic stress disorder: An overview of what is used in research

“…PPS model relies on a lack of control during threats, disruptive reminders of stressful experiences and limited social interaction that are also features of human PTSD [81][82][83] . The PPS model periodically immobilises rodents, followed by confrontations with a predator they naturally fear, and chronic social instability over an extended period of time [84] .…”