Post-traumatic growth among the UK veterans following treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder

Murphy, Dominic; Palmer, Emily; Lock, Robin H.; Busuttil, Walter

doi:10.1136/jramc-2016-000638

Cited by 16 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…There was a fairly large range in PTG scores across these papers, with a 26.47-point difference between the lowest PTGI value (mean = 32.60; SD = 14.88)33 and the highest PTGI value (mean = 59.07; SD = 23.48) 22. All but three19 33 46 of these papers reported Cronbach’s alphas for their samples on the PTGI, in order to assess the internal reliability of the scale.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…All but one33 of the studies were conducted in the USA. Thirteen18 19 21 22 34–42 out of the 21 studies were cross-sectional in nature and 1818–20 22 33–36 39–48 had mixed gender samples.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There was a fairly large range in PTG scores across the included papers. For the 14 studies that employed the PTGI, there was a 26.47-point difference between the lowest value33 and the highest value 22. Perhaps this difference is attributable to the mental health statuses of the veterans in these two studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Perhaps this difference is attributable to the mental health statuses of the veterans in these two studies. Specifically, the participants from the former study33 had been diagnosed with, and were being treated for, service-related PTSD symptoms at a military charity within the United Kingdom (UK), while the latter group were a non-clinical and randomly picked USA veteran sample 22…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Post-traumatic growth in the military: a systematic review

et al. 2018

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BackgroundPost-traumatic growth is defined as positive psychological, social or spiritual growth after a trauma.ObjectivesThis systematic review aimed to identify studies that quantitatively measured post-traumatic growth among (ex-) military personnel, to determine whether there is evidence of growth in this context and whether such growth is associated with any sociodemographic, military, trauma or mental health factors.Data sourcesThe electronic databases PsycInfo, OVIDmedline and Embase were searched for studies published between 2001 and 2017.Study eligibility criteria and participantsPapers were retained if they involved military or ex-military personnel, where some had been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.Study appraisalQuality assessment was conducted on all studies.Results21 studies were retained. The Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory was employed by 14 studies: means ranged from 32.60 (standard deviation = 14.88) to 59.07 (23.48). The Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory Short Form was used by five studies: means ranged from 17.11 (14.88) to 20.40 (11.88). These values suggest moderate growth. Higher levels of social support, spirituality and rumination and minority ethnicity were most frequently associated with more post-traumatic growth.LimitationsThe involved studies may lack generalisability and methodological quality.ConclusionsOverall, this paper confirms that negative reactions to trauma, particularly post-traumatic stress disorder, are not the only possible outcomes for service personnel, as moderate post-traumatic growth can also be observed.Implications of key findingsInterventions aimed at helping current and former armed forces personnel to identify and promote post-traumatic growth post-conflict may be beneficial for their well-being.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Post-traumatic growth in the military: a systematic review

et al. 2018

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“…In studies assessing PTG in military populations, Murphy, Palmer, Lock, and Busuttil (2017) studied a cohort of nonmedical U.K. service members who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and reported a mean PTGI score of 32.60. McLean et al (2011) studied a sample ( N = 253) of U.S. Air Force medics, physicians, and nurses who deployed to the Iraq war and reported a mean PTGI score of 38.56.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Positive Side of Deployment: Vicarious Posttraumatic Growth in U.S. Military Nurses Who Served in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars

Doherty

Scannell-Desch

Bready

2020

J of Nursing Scholarship

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Purpose To describe vicarious posttraumatic growth in U.S. military nurses who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Design A cross‐sectional descriptive design was used. Methods Respondents were asked to complete the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI), Core Beliefs Inventory (CBI), and six open‐ended write‐in questions as an electronic survey. Findings Appreciation of life and Personal strength were the strongest dimensions on the PTGI. This was also evident in participant responses to the open‐ended questions. The five dimensions of the PTGI were significantly correlated, indicating as growth increased in one dimension, growth increased in all dimensions. The CBI showed moderate to strong positive correlations with all items. Thus, the relationship between the total PTGI scores and the total CBI scores showed a strong, positive correlation, which indicated higher overall core belief scores associated with more growth in total PTGI scores. Conclusions This study provided initial evidence that some nurses who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars experienced posttraumatic growth. While healthcare providers need to be educated about their vulnerability when exposed to trauma, they also need to be aware of potential growth when caring for casualties. Clinical Relevance Nurses preparing to serve in war, as well as those returning, need to pay attention to their physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual health. Following return from war deployment, the military services need to take deliberate and careful measures to ensure that no returning personnel “fall through the cracks” in getting the help they need.

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Post-traumatic growth amongst UK armed forces personnel who were deployed to Afghanistan and the role of combat injury, mental health and pain: the ADVANCE cohort study

et al. 2022

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Background Post-traumatic growth (PTG) is a positive psychological consequence of trauma. The aims of this study were to investigate whether combat injury was associated with deployment-related PTG in a cohort of UK military personnel who were deployed to Afghanistan, and whether post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and pain mediate this relationship. Methods 521 physically injured (n = 138 amputation; n = 383 non-amputation injury) and 514 frequency-matched uninjured personnel completed questionnaires including the deployment-related Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory (DPTGI). DPTGI scores were categorised into tertiles of: no/low (score 0–20), moderate (score 21–34) or a large (35–63) degree of deployment-related PTG. Analysis was completed using generalised structural equation modelling. Results A large degree of PTG was reported by 28.0% (n = 140) of the uninjured group, 36.9% (n = 196) of the overall injured group, 45.4% (n = 62) of amputee and 34.1% (n = 134) of the non-amputee injured subgroups. Combat injury had a direct effect on reporting a large degree of PTG [Relative risk ratio (RRR) 1.59 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.17–2.17)] compared to sustaining no injury. Amputation injuries also had a significant direct effect [RRR 2.18 (95% CI 1.24–3.75)], but non-amputation injuries did not [RRR 1.35 (95% CI 0.92–1.93)]. PTSD, depression and pain partially mediate this relationship, though mediation differed depending on the injury subtype. PTSD had a curvilinear relationship with PTG, whilst depression had a negative association and pain had a positive association. Conclusions Combat injury, in particular injury resulting in traumatic amputation, is associated with reporting a large degree of PTG.

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Post-traumatic growth among the UK veterans following treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder

Abstract: This study observed the presence of PTG following exposure to traumatic events within a sample of the UK veterans following their treatment for PTSD. PTG scores were moderately low in comparison to similar studies in the USA.

Cited by 16 publications

References 39 publications

Post-traumatic growth in the military: a systematic review

Post-traumatic growth in the military: a systematic review

A Positive Side of Deployment: Vicarious Posttraumatic Growth in U.S. Military Nurses Who Served in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars

Post-traumatic growth amongst UK armed forces personnel who were deployed to Afghanistan and the role of combat injury, mental health and pain: the ADVANCE cohort study

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