ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre

English

Moral injury and mental health among health-care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic : meta-analysis

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, health-care workers (HCWs) may have been confronted with situations that may culminate in moral injury (MI). MI is the psychological distress that may result from perpetrating or witnessing actions that violate one’s moral codes. Literature suggests that MI can be associated with mental health problems.

Cross-national analysis of the prevalence of prolonged grief disorder

Background
Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is now included as a diagnosis in international classification systems. Most research on PGD is based on Western populations, but first data from non-Western countries have recently become available. Little is still known about country-related effects on PGD's prevalence.

Objective
Determining possible causes of variations in the prevalence of PGD as defined by DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 within and between countries.

Profiles of posttraumatic stress disorder and negative world assumptions in treatment-seeking refugees

Background: Refugees often suffer from trauma-related psychopathology, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Negative world assumptions are strongly correlated with the development, course, and severity of PTSD.

 

Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether there are distinct profiles of PTSD and negative world assumptions (NWA) and examine whether trauma load, torture, and gender differentially predict such symptom profiles.

 

Do insecure attachment styles predict prolonged grief symptoms? : Significant null findings

Insecure attachment is proposed to be a risk factor in the development and persistence of severe grief. Although prior research demonstrates positive cross-sectional and longitudinal correlations between attachment styles and prolonged grief symptoms, controlled longitudinal analyses yield fewer convincing results.

 

Childhood trauma histories in men and women assessed by the childhood attachment and relational trauma screen (CARTS) and the global psychotrauma screen (GPS) : Results from the global collaboration on traumatic stress (GC-TS)

Background: Whether there are biological sex differences in rates of childhood trauma exposure perpetrated by female versus male biological parents remains largely unknown. Moreover, the relative risk posed by various vulnerability factors for transdiagnostic mental health outcomes among females vs. males in adulthood has received insufficient attention.

Unity or Anarchy? : A Historical Search for the Psychological Consequences of Psychotrauma

The field of traumatic stress is often referred to as being in a state of controversy and lack of continuity. Throughout history, disputes repeatedly centered on defining the psychological consequences of severe adverse events and on their causes. Even to this day this is current. To understand these controversies, an extensive historical literature review is presented of how mental consequences of trauma have been described in history, of the circumstances in which this took place, and of the disputes that have influenced the conceptualization of these mental responses.

 

Functional brain changes after alternative pharmacological interventions in posttraumatic stress disorder : A systematic review of clinical trials

Background
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex and heterogeneous mental health condition that can develop after exposure to a traumatic event. Clinical trials have used alternative pharmacological agents to treat PTSD, but their associated neural correlates remain unclear. The present systematic review aims to summarize the changes in brain function associated with the use of these alternative pharmacological agents in PTSD.

How does it feel? : An exploration of neurobiological and clinical correlates of alexithymia in trauma-exposed police-officers with and without PTSD

Background: Alexithymia, an inability to recognise one’s emotions, has been associated with trauma-exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Previous research suggests involvement of the oxytocin system, and socio-emotional neural processes. However, the paucity of neurobiological research on alexithymia, particularly in trauma-exposed populations, warrants further investigation.

Objective: Explore associations between alexithymia, endogenous oxytocin levels, and socio-emotional brain function and morphometry in a trauma-exposed sample.

Factors associated with mental health of young children during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands

Background
The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying societal measures have impacted children and their families all over the world. Little is known about the factors associated with mental health outcomes in young children (i.e., 1 to 6 years old) during the pandemic. The current study aimed to examine associations with potential risk and protective factors, i.e., direct COVID-19 exposure factors as well as within-family characteristics.

The effect of individual characteristics on susceptibility to aggressive and/or intimidating approaches : quantifying probability pathways by creating a victimization model

Background: A significant body of literature has identified multiple factors that contribute to established victimization by aggressive and/or intimidating behaviours. These studies primarily originate from the fields of intimate partner violence (IPV), bullying, sexual abuse, and/or commercial sexual exploitation (CSE), and generally focus on female victims. It appears, however, complicated to quantify the cumulative contribution of these factors on susceptibility to intimidating and/or hostile engagements on an individual level.

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