Citation

Harvey AG, Bryant RA, Dang ST. J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 1998; 66(3): 500-506.

Affiliation

School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, American Psychological Association)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

9642888

Abstract

Survivors of motor vehicle accidents with acute stress disorder (ASD) or with no ASD participated in a study on autobiographical memory within a week of their trauma. In Experiment 1, participants were provided cue words to elicit autobiographical memories of both an unconstrained time period and their trauma. Participants with ASD reported fewer specific memories to positive cue words than did non-ASD participants, even when the influence of depression was controlled. In Experiment 2, the same participants were assessed for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 6 months posttrauma. Poor recall of specific memories of the trauma in Experiment 1 accounted for 25% of the variance of PTSD severity. Accessibility of trauma memories in the acute posttrauma phase may have significant implications for longer term adjustment.

Language: en