Traumatic events, posttraumatic stress disorder, attachment style, and working alliance in a sample of people with psychosis.

Christine Barrowclough, Nicholas Tarrier, Alicia L Picken, Katherine Berry

Journal: The Journal of nervous and mental disease 2010;198(10):775-8

PMID: 20921870

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Abstract

There is a high incidence of trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in people with a diagnosis of psychosis. Sequelae of trauma may affect the ability to engage in both attachment and therapeutic relationships. This study investigated associations between trauma histories, PTSD, attachment styles, and working alliance in a sample of 110 individuals with psychosis and substance misuse. Anxious attachment was associated with number of interpersonal traumas and PTSD reported, but there were no associations between trauma and alliance. There were discrepancies in number of traumatic events reported by care coordinators and patients. The findings of this study highlight the potential use of attachment theory in working with trauma and PTSD in psychosis.

Address: Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Health in Social Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. [email protected]

DOI: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e3181f4b163

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MeSH Terms: Adolescent, Adult, Case Management, Female, Humans, Interview, Psychological, Life Change Events, Male, Middle Aged, Personality Inventory, Physician-Patient Relations, Psychotic Disorders, Reactive Attachment Disorder, Schizophrenia, Schizophrenic Psychology, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Substance-Related Disorders, Young Adult