Predictors of posttraumatic growth 10–11 months after a fatal earthquake.

Achterhof, Robin; Dorahy, Martin J.; Rowlands, Amy; Renouf, Charlotte; Britt, Eileen; Carter, Janet D.

doi:10.1037/tra0000286

Cited by 19 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 31 publications

(51 reference statements)

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“…Conversely, sense of mastery, self-control, or self-efficacy are resources primarily focused on problem solving in challenging times and on coping with potentially resulting distress; hence, individuals exhibiting greater levels of mastery may be less inclined to appraise their circumstances as opportunities to reap benefits from these experiences. This reasoning might be particularly compatible with theoretical and empirical voices arguing that the accounts of positive and beneficial posttraumatic experience are more illusory, thus representing primarily coping efforts aiming at justifying suffering, rather than manifesting actual psychological and social empowerment (Achterhof et al, 2018; Hobfoll, 2011; Tedeschi & McNally, 2011). Moreover, there are empirical reports that revealed significant negative correlations between mastery/efficacy and PTG indicating that people with greater beliefs in their coping competency were less likely to report positive life changes in the aftermath of crises (e.g., Moore, Cerel, & Jobes, 2015; Pooley et al, 2013).…”

Section: Personal Masterymentioning

confidence: 54%

Personal mastery and community dedication as mediators of the association of trauma exposure with PTSS and PTG.

Zanbar¹,

Kaniasty²,

Ben-Tzur³

et al. 2021

Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy

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Objective: The present study, conducted after the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, was aimed to investigate 2 resources (i.e., personal mastery and community dedication) hypothesized to have a mediating effect on the relationship between trauma exposure and PTSS (posttraumatic stress symptoms) and PTG (posttraumatic growth) in the aftermath of a traumatic event. Method: Israeli civilians (N = 1,014) completed a questionnaire assessing levels of trauma exposure (the predictors), sense of mastery and community dedication (the mediators), and PTSS and PTG (the outcomes). Results: PTSS and PTG were positively related. Sense of mastery mediated the association between trauma exposure and PTSS symptoms and was negatively associated with PTSS and PTG. Community dedication was positively related to PTG and mediated the association of trauma with PTG. Conclusions: People higher in mastery may not need to search for a “silver lining” in coping with psychological consequences of trauma as they believe they are capable of handling it. Conversely, persons with higher levels of coping self-confidence may be denied the benefits of posttraumatic growth in coping with trauma. People’s connections to the community in times of coping with collective upheavals may not protect them against PTSS yet community orientation may bring postevent benefits of posttraumatic growth.

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Section: Personal Masterymentioning

confidence: 54%

Personal mastery and community dedication as mediators of the association of trauma exposure with PTSS and PTG.

Zanbar¹,

Kaniasty²,

Ben-Tzur³

et al. 2021

Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy

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“…Even among the few longitudinal studies, PTG is typically assessed via retrospective self‐reports of growth. The extant longitudinal studies suggest it is common for disaster survivors to perceive PTG, yet this self‐perception may be more reflective of active coping efforts than of actual positive personality change (Achterhof et al, 2018; Hafstad, Kilmer, & Gil‐Rivas, 2011; Holgersen, Boe, & Holen, 2010). For instance, studies suggest perceived PTG from disasters is predicted by deliberate cognitive processing (e.g., postdisaster meaning making) and secondary control beliefs (e.g., changing one's thoughts to accommodate one's postdisaster reality), as well as by virtues (e.g., gratitude and spiritual fortitude; McElroy‐Heltzel et al, 2018; Zhou & Wu, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In so doing, we are able to examine change over time (via the longitudinal design of both studies) and examine prospective change since the disaster (via the predisaster‐inclusive design of Study 2). Lastly, most extant longitudinal studies focus on only one disaster and sample (e.g., Achterhof et al, 2018), but we have recruited samples from two major hurricanes that occurred in the same geographical region (U.S. South) and just 2 weeks apart, permitting examination of the extent to which findings replicate across similar samples. (Nonetheless, only Study 2 can address our central research question, given the lack of predisaster data in Study 1.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived and actual posttraumatic growth in religiousness and spirituality following disasters

Davis

Tongeren

McElroy‐Heltzel

et al. 2019

Journal of Personality

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ObjectiveReligious/spiritual (R/S) growth is a core domain of posttraumatic growth (PTG). However, research on R/S growth following disasters has over‐relied on retrospective self‐reports of growth. We therefore examined longitudinal change in religiousness/spirituality following two disasters.MethodReligious survivors of Hurricanes Harvey (Study 1) and Irma (Study 2) completed measures of perceived R/S PTG, general religiousness/spirituality (“current standing”‐R/S PTG), and subfacets of religiousness/spirituality (spiritual fortitude, religious motivations, and benevolent theodicies). In Study 1, 451 participants responded at 1‐month and 2‐month postdisaster. In Study 2, participants responded within 5‐days predisaster and at 1‐month (N = 1,144) and 6‐months postdisaster (N = 684).ResultsIn both studies, perceived R/S PTG was weakly related to longitudinal increases in general religiousness/spirituality and in most of its subfacets, but reliable growth in any R/S outcome was rare. Additionally, Study 2 revealed evidence that actual change in psychological well‐being is associated with actual (but not perceived) R/S PTG, but disaster survivors tend to exhibit declines in their religiousness/spirituality, spiritual fortitude, and religious motivations.ConclusionsResults suggest disaster survivors are only modestly accurate in perceiving how much positive R/S change they experience following a disaster. We discuss implications for clinical practice, scientific research, and empirical and conceptual work on PTG more broadly.

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“…The constructive side is correlated with healthy adjustment, whereas the illusory side is correlated with denial. Similarly, other studies have concluded that self-reported growth can indicate an adaptive outcome of successful cognitive coping or a positive illusion that is a result of avoidance and denial (76,91). However, the question remains whether self-perception of growth may be beneficial to individuals even if it does not reflect measurable change.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress-Related Growth: Building a More Resilient Brain

Ord

Stranahan

Hurley

et al. 2020

JNP

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FIGURE 3. An individual's ability to dismiss unwanted memories when they intrude into conscious awareness is an important aspect of healthy emotion regulation (16,17). This capacity is experimentally assessed by pairing items to be remembered with reminder cues and comparing results when participants are instructed to recall (Think) or instructed to not recall (NoThink) the paired items when cued. In healthy individuals, successful suppression of an intrusive memory weakens the memory trace (as indexed by decreased priming effects). Impaired ability to suppress intrusive memories on this task has been reported for multiple psychiatric disorders (16,17). fMRI studies of healthy individuals performing the Think/NoThink task have reported that memory suppression is associated with increased activation (NoThink .Think) in frontal and parietal cortices and decreased activation (NoThink ,Think) in memory-related areas (e.g., hippocampus, memory-associated domain-specific cortical areas). Approximate locations and extents of cortical activations and deactivations from two studies of healthy individuals are color-coded onto representative MRIs (18,19). One study compared trauma-exposed individuals with and without PTSD to unexposed individuals (19). The authors reported that the PTSD group did not have the decreases in memory strength for NoThink items or the increases in topdown inhibition during suppression of intrusive memories seen in the other groups. As discussed by the authors, these findings indicate an impairment in memory regulation in the PTSD group that may be the reason memory intrusions are so persistent.

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Predictors of posttraumatic growth 10–11 months after a fatal earthquake.

Abstract: Support was found for the coping model of PTG, suggesting the importance of fostering growth to manage posttraumatic distress. (PsycINFO Database Record

Cited by 19 publications

References 31 publications

Personal mastery and community dedication as mediators of the association of trauma exposure with PTSS and PTG.

Personal mastery and community dedication as mediators of the association of trauma exposure with PTSS and PTG.

Perceived and actual posttraumatic growth in religiousness and spirituality following disasters

Stress-Related Growth: Building a More Resilient Brain

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