Citation

Dodson TS, Beck JG. J. Anxiety Disord. 2017; 47: 106-113.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.janxdis.2017.01.005

PMID

28117191

Abstract

Considerable research has examined the association between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and social support. One facet of this relationship that deserves greater attention concerns trauma survivors' negative expectations towards social support, termed negative network orientation. To expand our understanding of negative network orientation, the current study examined shame as a possible mediator in the relationship between PTSD symptoms and negative network orientation, in a sample of 202 female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). Additionally, a history of child abuse (CA) was evaluated as a moderator of the association between shame and negative network orientation in this model. Path analyses indicated a significant indirect effect between PTSD symptoms and negative network orientation through shame, indicative of mediation. A history of CA moderated this effect, such that women with a history of CA in addition to IPV showed a significantly stronger relationship between PTSD symptoms and negative network orientation through shame, relative to women who only had a history of IPV. These findings support the relevance of shame in understanding the association between PTSD symptoms and negative beliefs about social support and highlight the role of childhood abuse as a moderator in this process among IPV survivors.

Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Interpersonal trauma; Negative network orientation; PTSD symptoms; Shame