Childhood trauma, dissociation, post-traumatic stress disorder and cognitions in clinical and non-clinical populations

Furnes, Desire (2018) Childhood trauma, dissociation, post-traumatic stress disorder and cognitions in clinical and non-clinical populations. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

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Abstract

Background: Childhood Trauma has been linked to a wide range of psychopathologies. However, although individuals diagnosed with psychosis and individuals diagnosed with BPD have been found to overlap in terms of their trauma histories, and similar trauma-related mechanisms have been explored in both groups, these two clinical groups are often studied in isolation. The main aim of this thesis was to explore how trauma and trauma-related mechanisms are related to the development of psychotic and borderline symptomatology from both a diagnostic and transdiagnostic perspective.

Method: First, theoretical accounts of critical concepts and of BPD and psychosis were reviewed. Second, a systematic review approached psychotic symptomatology from a transdiagnostic perspective, in which the relationship between childhood trauma, cognitive appraisals and psychotic-like experiences were examined in samples drawn from different psychosis populations. Third, an empirical study examined the relationship between childhood traumas, trauma-related mechanisms and psychotic and borderline symptomatology from both a diagnostic and transdiagnostic perspective. Finally, an attempt was made to integrate theoretical accounts with the thesis findings, and research and clinical implications were discussed.

Results: Findings from the systematic review supported previous evidence suggesting that there is a dose-response relationship between trauma severity and symptom severity, and that specific trauma types may be linked to specific symptoms. These findings were confirmed in the empirical paper (and outlined in an additional results chapter). The findings also suggested an important role of trauma-related mechanisms and supported transdiagnostic predictions. Specifically, dissociation and post-traumatic symptomatology may partially explain development of psychosis and borderline symptomatology, respectively.

Conclusion: The relationship between childhood trauma and psychosis and borderline symptomatology is becoming well established. This thesis portfolio emphasised the benefits of approaching symptomatology from a transdiagnostic perspective, as well as the advantages of using more complex statistical approaches when exploring these relationships.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
Depositing User:	Users 9280 not found.
Date Deposited:	16 Nov 2018 13:29
Last Modified:	16 Nov 2018 13:29
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/68930
DOI:

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