Citation

Caspi Y, Slobodin O, Kammerer N, Enosh G, Shorer S, Klein E. J. Trauma. Stress 2010; 23(6): 682-690.

Affiliation

Rambam Medical Center. y_caspi@rambam.health.gov.il.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/jts.20581

PMID

21171128

Abstract

This community-based study examined emotional and somatic symptoms of 129 Bedouin women whose husbands serve in the Israel Defense Forces. Wives of men diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) reported more symptoms than wives of men diagnosed with other disorders and wives of men with no diagnosis. Findings indicate that not only was PTSD in Bedouin servicemen positively associated with their wives' symptoms of posttraumatic stress and depression and somatic complaints, but that this relationship was fully mediated by husbands' aggression. Unraveling the special circumstances of women from traditional backgrounds faced with the devastating effects of husbands' combat-related posttraumatic pathology may inform an approach to the concept of vicarious trauma that is more specific to non-Western societies.

Language: en