Evidence for a dissociative subtype of post-traumatic stress disorder among help-seeking childhood sexual abuse survivors

J Trauma Dissociation. 2006;7(2):7-27. doi: 10.1300/J229v07n02_02.

Abstract

This study examined evidence for a dissociative subtype of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among women seeking psychotherapy for childhood sexual abuse (CSA). One hundred and twenty-two women seeking treatment for CSA completed a battery of questionnaires assessing PTSD, dissociative symptoms, and child maltreatment. Using signal detection analysis, we identified high and low dissociation PTSD subgroups. A constellation of three PTSD symptoms-hypervigilance, sense of foreshortened future, and sleep difficulties-discriminated between these two subgroups (OR = 8.15). Further evidence was provided by the finding of a nonlinear relationship between severity of childhood maltreatment and dissociation in the women with PTSD. These results provide support for a dissociative subtype of PTSD that may stem from more severe childhood experiences of neglect and abuse.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Child
  • Child Abuse, Sexual / psychology*
  • Child Abuse, Sexual / statistics & numerical data
  • Child Abuse, Sexual / therapy
  • Child, Preschool
  • Dissociative Disorders / classification
  • Dissociative Disorders / etiology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Psychotherapy
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / classification*
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / etiology
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / therapy
  • Stress, Psychological / classification
  • Stress, Psychological / etiology*
  • Stress, Psychological / therapy
  • Surveys and Questionnaires