TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2014//
TI  - Resilience and post-traumatic stress disorder in the acute aftermath of rape: a comparative analysis of adolescents versus adults
JO  - Journal of child and adolescent mental health
A1  - van der Walt, Lydia
A1  - Suliman, Sharain
A1  - Martin, Lindi
A1  - Lammers, Kees
A1  - Seedat, Soraya
SP  - 239
EP  - 249
VL  - 26
IS  - 3
N2  - Background Rape trauma contributes significantly to the mental burden of disease, affecting resilience and vulnerabilities at every developmental life stage. Appropriate resilience-promoting strategies could potentially buffer or protect trauma-exposed individuals from psychopathology. Aim This study aimed to assess and compare (using validated measuring instruments) resilience, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other variables in the acute aftermath of rape, between adolescent and adult females and to assess associations with these variables. <br><br>METHOD We conducted a comparative analysis of resilience, PTSD, prior trauma, demographic variables and psychiatric morbidity in 41 adolescent and 47 adult female rape survivors six weeks post-rape. We assessed the relationship of resilience to PTSD, demographic variables and prior trauma and investigated if resilience levels predicted PTSD after adjusting for prior trauma. <br><br>RESULTS We found no significant differences in resilience levels between the groups, but the adolescent PTSD rate (40%) was double that in adults (20%). In adults, a significant negative correlation was evident between resilience and PTSD symptoms scores. <br><br>CONCLUSION More knowledge of resilience versus stress susceptibility for PTSD throughout the lifespan is needed and can inform the development of more effective clinical assessment and resilience-promoting strategies.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1728-0583
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.2989/17280583.2014.923433
ID  - ref1
ER  -