Women's self-perceptions in the aftermath of trauma: The role of trauma-centrality and trauma-type

Psychol Trauma. 2019 Jul;11(5):542-550. doi: 10.1037/tra0000393. Epub 2018 Jul 16.

Abstract

Objective: Traumatic events tend to play a major role in the way we perceive ourselves. Whereas the links between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and self-perceptions are well examined, less is known regarding other factors that may be involved in the erosion of self-perceptions. We sought to examine the contribution of trauma-centrality and trauma-type to the erosion of self-perceptions following trauma. Our hypotheses were (a) trauma-centrality is significantly related to impairments in self-perceptions, (b) sexual assault (SA) is related to greater erosion in self-perceptions compared with motor vehicle accident (MVA) and to unexpected death (bereavement), and (c) the effects of trauma-centrality and trauma-type on self-perceptions remain significant when statistically controlling for levels of PTSD symptoms.

Method: Adult American women (N = 108: SA = 48, MVA = 38, bereavement = 22) were recruited via online labor market and completed self-report measures of trauma history, PTSD symptoms, trauma-centrality, and several aspects of self-perceptions.

Results: PTSD symptoms, trauma-centrality, and trauma-type were each found to contribute to the prediction of certain aspects of self-perceptions. Specifically, trauma-centrality was related to negative posttraumatic cognitions above and beyond the effects of PTSD symptoms. In addition, SA was related to greater impairments in global and domain-specific self-perceptions compared with MVA and bereavement.

Conclusion: Our findings highlight the roles of trauma-centrality and trauma-type in the erosion of self-perceptions following trauma. Our data emphasize the importance of considering the multiple factors influencing self-perceptions and of adopting a multifaceted conceptualization of the self in trauma-related research and clinical practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

MeSH terms

  • Accidents, Traffic / psychology
  • Adult
  • Bereavement
  • Crime Victims / psychology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Life Change Events*
  • Self Concept*
  • Sex Offenses / psychology
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / etiology
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / psychology
  • Stress, Psychological / etiology*

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