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A meta-analysis of risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents

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posted on 2023-06-08, 12:45 authored by David Trickey, Andy P Siddaway, Richard Meiser-Stedman, Lucy Serpell, Andy FieldAndy Field
Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex and chronic disorder that causes substantial distress and interferes with social and educational functioning. Consequently, identifying the risk factors that make a child more likely to experience traumatic distress is of academic, clinical and social importance. This meta-analysis estimated the population effect sizes of 25 potential risk factors for PTSD in children and adolescents aged 6-18 years across 64 studies (N = 32,238). Medium to large effect sizes were shown for many factors relating to subjective experience of the event and post-trauma variables (low social support, peri-trauma fear, perceived life threat, social withdrawal, comorbid psychological problem, poor family functioning, distraction, PTSD at time 1, and thought suppression); whereas pre-trauma variables and more objective measures of the assumed severity of the event generated small to medium effect sizes. This indicates that subjective peri-trauma factors and post-event factors are likely to have a major role in determining whether a child develops PTSD following exposure to a traumatic event. Such factors could potentially be assessed following a potentially traumatic event in order to screen for those most vulnerable to developing PTSD and target treatment efforts accordingly. The findings support the cognitive model of PTSD as a way of understanding its development and guiding interventions to reduce symptoms.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Accepted version

Journal

Clinical Psychology Review

ISSN

0272-7358

Publisher

Elsevier

Issue

2

Volume

32

Page range

122-138

Department affiliated with

  • Psychology Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2012-11-08

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2016-03-22

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2019-06-14

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