Comparison of Characteristics of Vietnam Veterans with and without Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Abstract

Characteristics of 107 Vietnam veterans with and without Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), who had been exposed to varying levels of combat, were compared. Severity of psychopathology as assessed on the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, locus of control orientation as measured by the Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Control Scale, and ability to have provided structure and meaning to the Vietnam experience were examined. Compared to veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, those without the disorder had lower Neuroticism and Psychoticism scores, were more internal in their locus of control orientation, and were more likely to have shown ability to provide structure to the Vietnam experience. The additional finding that veterans with high combat experience but without PTSD evidenced less neuroticism than low combat veterans without PTSD provides evidence that those who did not develop the disorder despite high exposure to combat stress are individuals with exceptional emotional strength and resilience.

Individual Differences in Posttraumatic Distress: Problems with the DSM-IV Model

“…High-combat Vietnam veterans showed no PTSD if theyhad low trait neuroticism, while low-combat high-neuroticism veterans showed PTSD (214). Among twins, those with high genetic risk for depression showed a greater response to toxic events but even most of them did not develop the disorder (95).…”

A Second Look at Prior Trauma and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Effects of Subsequent Trauma

“…Evidence that personal vulnerabilities, chiefly neuroticism, a history of major depression and anxiety disorders, and family history of psychiatric disorders, increase the risk of PTSD has been consistently reported. [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28] There also is evidence that personal vulnerabilities are stronger predictors of a psychiatric response to traumatic events than is trauma severity, especially in civilian samples. 28,29 In this longitudinal epidemiological study of young adults with repeated assessments during a 10-year follow-up period, we estimate the risk of PTSD associated with stressors experienced during the follow-up periods in relation to the respondents' prior traumatic events and PTSD that had occurred during preceding periods.…”

Resilience: research evidence and conceptual considerations for posttraumatic stress disorder

“…An internal locus of control (feeling that one can generally influence one's life circumstances) has been associated with lower levels of PTSD symptoms in several [Bolstad and Zinbarg, 1997;Casella and Motta, 1990;KuterovacJagodic, 2003;Marmar et al, 1996;Soet et al, 2003] but not all [Kilpatrick and Williams, 1998] studies. For example, locus of control was measured prior to trauma in a study of women going through childbirth [Soet et al, 2003].…”