Z Solomon1, R Dekel, M Mikulincer. 1. The Adler Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection, Tel Aviv University, Israel. Solomon@post.tau.ac.il
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Victims of war captivity sometimes suffer from complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a unique form of PTSD that entails various alterations in personality. These alterations may involve changes in attachment orientation. METHOD: The sample comprised two groups of veterans from the 1973 Yom Kippur War: 103 ex-prisoners of war (ex-POWs) and 106 comparable control veterans. They were assessed at two points in time, 18 years and 30 years after the war. RESULTS: Ex-POWs suffered from more post-traumatic symptoms than controls at both measurements points and these symptoms increased only among ex-POWs from Time 1 to Time 2. In addition, both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance increased with time among ex-POWs, whereas they decreased slightly or remained stable among controls. Finally, the increases in attachment anxiety and avoidance were positively associated with the increase in post-traumatic symptoms among both study groups. Further analyses indicated that early PTSD symptoms predicted later attachment better than early attachment predicted later PTSD symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that: (1) complex traumas are implicated in attachment orientations and PTSD symptoms even many years after captivity; (2) there is an increase in attachment insecurities (anxiety, avoidance) and an increase in PTSD symptoms decades after the captivity; (3) and post-traumatic stress symptoms predict attachment orientations better than attachment orientations predict an increase in PTSD symptoms.
BACKGROUND: Victims of war captivity sometimes suffer from complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a unique form of PTSD that entails various alterations in personality. These alterations may involve changes in attachment orientation. METHOD: The sample comprised two groups of veterans from the 1973 Yom Kippur War: 103 ex-prisoners of war (ex-POWs) and 106 comparable control veterans. They were assessed at two points in time, 18 years and 30 years after the war. RESULTS: Ex-POWs suffered from more post-traumatic symptoms than controls at both measurements points and these symptoms increased only among ex-POWs from Time 1 to Time 2. In addition, both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance increased with time among ex-POWs, whereas they decreased slightly or remained stable among controls. Finally, the increases in attachment anxiety and avoidance were positively associated with the increase in post-traumatic symptoms among both study groups. Further analyses indicated that early PTSD symptoms predicted later attachment better than early attachment predicted later PTSD symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that: (1) complex traumas are implicated in attachment orientations and PTSD symptoms even many years after captivity; (2) there is an increase in attachment insecurities (anxiety, avoidance) and an increase in PTSD symptoms decades after the captivity; (3) and post-traumatic stress symptoms predict attachment orientations better than attachment orientations predict an increase in PTSD symptoms.
Authors: Carol E Franz; Michael J Lyons; Kelly M Spoon; Richard L Hauger; Kristen C Jacobson; James B Lohr; Ruth McKenzie; Matthew S Panizzon; Wesley K Thompson; Ming T Tsuang; Terrie Vasilopoulos; Eero Vuoksimaa; Hong Xian; William S Kremen Journal: Am J Geriatr Psychiatry Date: 2014-02-19 Impact factor: 4.105
Authors: Alyson K Zalta; Vanessa Tirone; Daria Orlowska; Rebecca K Blais; Ashton Lofgreen; Brian Klassen; Philip Held; Natalie R Stevens; Elizabeth Adkins; Amy L Dent Journal: Psychol Bull Date: 2020-12-03 Impact factor: 17.737