Structure of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and psychosocial functioning in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom

Robert H. Pietrzak; Marc B. Goldstein; James C. Malley; Alison J. Rivers; Steven M. Southwick

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2010.04.039

Structure of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and psychosocial functioning in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom

Robert H. Pietrzak, Marc B. Goldstein, James C. Malley, Alison J. Rivers, Steven M. Southwick

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

114 Scopus citations

Abstract

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric conditions in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF-OIF), but little is known about the structure of PTSD symptoms, and associations between PTSD symptom clusters and psychosocial functioning in this population. A total of 272 OEF-OIF Veterans in Connecticut completed a mail survey containing measures of psychopathology, resilience, and psychosocial functioning. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the 4-factor dysphoria model, which is comprised of separate re-experiencing, avoidance, dysphoria, and hyperarousal symptom clusters, provided the best representation of PTSD symptom structure in this sample. Dysphoria symptoms were independently associated with a broad range of psychosocial measures, even after controlling for age, combat exposure, and other PTSD symptom clusters. Re-experiencing symptoms were associated with alcohol use problems, and avoidance symptoms were associated with increased psychosocial difficulties and decreased perceptions of postdeployment social support. These results suggest that dysphoria symptoms were strongly related to a broad range of psychosocial measures in this sample of OEF-OIF Veterans. Dysphoria symptoms may deserve special attention in the assessment and treatment of symptomatic OEF-OIF Veterans.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	323-329
Number of pages	7
Journal	Psychiatry Research
Volume	178
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2010.04.039
State	Published - Jul 2010
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Alcohol
Confirmatory factor analysis
Depression
Functioning
Posttraumatic stress disorder
Stigma
Treatment
Validity

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10.1016/j.psychres.2010.04.039

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title = "Structure of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and psychosocial functioning in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom",

abstract = "Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most prevalent psychiatric conditions in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF-OIF), but little is known about the structure of PTSD symptoms, and associations between PTSD symptom clusters and psychosocial functioning in this population. A total of 272 OEF-OIF Veterans in Connecticut completed a mail survey containing measures of psychopathology, resilience, and psychosocial functioning. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the 4-factor dysphoria model, which is comprised of separate re-experiencing, avoidance, dysphoria, and hyperarousal symptom clusters, provided the best representation of PTSD symptom structure in this sample. Dysphoria symptoms were independently associated with a broad range of psychosocial measures, even after controlling for age, combat exposure, and other PTSD symptom clusters. Re-experiencing symptoms were associated with alcohol use problems, and avoidance symptoms were associated with increased psychosocial difficulties and decreased perceptions of postdeployment social support. These results suggest that dysphoria symptoms were strongly related to a broad range of psychosocial measures in this sample of OEF-OIF Veterans. Dysphoria symptoms may deserve special attention in the assessment and treatment of symptomatic OEF-OIF Veterans.",

keywords = "Alcohol, Confirmatory factor analysis, Depression, Functioning, Posttraumatic stress disorder, Stigma, Treatment, Validity",

author = "Pietrzak, {Robert H.} and Goldstein, {Marc B.} and Malley, {James C.} and Rivers, {Alison J.} and Southwick, {Steven M.}",

note = "Funding Information: We thank the Veterans who participated in this survey. We appreciate the assistance of the Center for Public Policy and Social Research at Central Connecticut State University and the Connecticut Department of Veterans' Affairs in conducting this research. This work was supported by a grant from the State of Connecticut, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services , the National Center for PTSD , and a private donation.",

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AU - Goldstein, Marc B.

AU - Malley, James C.

AU - Rivers, Alison J.

AU - Southwick, Steven M.

N1 - Funding Information: We thank the Veterans who participated in this survey. We appreciate the assistance of the Center for Public Policy and Social Research at Central Connecticut State University and the Connecticut Department of Veterans' Affairs in conducting this research. This work was supported by a grant from the State of Connecticut, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services , the National Center for PTSD , and a private donation.

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Structure of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and psychosocial functioning in Veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom

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Keywords

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