Abstract
Objective: The prevalence, construct validity, risk factors and psychopathological correlates associated with ICD-11 posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
and complex PTSD (CPTSD) as measured by the International Trauma Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (ITQ-CA) were assessed in a sample of young people from Northern Ireland.
Method: Participants were trauma-exposed 11–19-year-olds (N = 507) who
participated in the Northern Ireland Youth Wellbeing Prevalence Survey
(YWS-NI, 2020). Factor mixture modelling (FMM) was used to test the latent
structure of the ITQ-CA. Risk-factors and psychopathological correlates associated with latent class membership, and ICD-11diagnostic status, were also
investigated.
Results: More participants met the ITQ-CA criteria for CPTSD (3.4%, n = 44)
than PTSD (1.5%, n = 19). A second-order FMM comprising a ‘partial-PTSD
class’, a ‘CPTSD class’, a ‘DSO class’ and a ‘low symptom endorsement class’
was the best-fitting model. Younger age and cumulative trauma were risk factors for all trauma classes. Female gender and two or more violent traumas
were significant predictors of the ‘PTSD’ and ‘CPTSD’ classes, while single
sexual trauma was a significant predictor of the ‘DSO’ and ‘CPTSD’ classes.
Two or more sexual traumas was a unique predictor of ‘CPTSD class’, while
two or more vicarious traumas was a unique predictor of ‘DSO class’. The
‘CPTSD’ class displayed the most notable comorbidity.
Conclusions: Findings indicate that CPTSD may be more prevalent than
PTSD in children and young people. Support for the ICD-11 conceptualisation
of CPTSD as representing a unique diagnostic construct was supported using
FMM, with findings indicating trauma symptom class-specific risk profiles.
and complex PTSD (CPTSD) as measured by the International Trauma Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (ITQ-CA) were assessed in a sample of young people from Northern Ireland.
Method: Participants were trauma-exposed 11–19-year-olds (N = 507) who
participated in the Northern Ireland Youth Wellbeing Prevalence Survey
(YWS-NI, 2020). Factor mixture modelling (FMM) was used to test the latent
structure of the ITQ-CA. Risk-factors and psychopathological correlates associated with latent class membership, and ICD-11diagnostic status, were also
investigated.
Results: More participants met the ITQ-CA criteria for CPTSD (3.4%, n = 44)
than PTSD (1.5%, n = 19). A second-order FMM comprising a ‘partial-PTSD
class’, a ‘CPTSD class’, a ‘DSO class’ and a ‘low symptom endorsement class’
was the best-fitting model. Younger age and cumulative trauma were risk factors for all trauma classes. Female gender and two or more violent traumas
were significant predictors of the ‘PTSD’ and ‘CPTSD’ classes, while single
sexual trauma was a significant predictor of the ‘DSO’ and ‘CPTSD’ classes.
Two or more sexual traumas was a unique predictor of ‘CPTSD class’, while
two or more vicarious traumas was a unique predictor of ‘DSO class’. The
‘CPTSD’ class displayed the most notable comorbidity.
Conclusions: Findings indicate that CPTSD may be more prevalent than
PTSD in children and young people. Support for the ICD-11 conceptualisation
of CPTSD as representing a unique diagnostic construct was supported using
FMM, with findings indicating trauma symptom class-specific risk profiles.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 110-125 |
Number of pages | 16 |
Journal | Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica |
Volume | 146 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 20 Jul 2022 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 31 Aug 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2022 The Authors. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Funding Information:
We wish to acknowledge the Department for the Economy PhD studentship who supported this work. The Department for the Economy had no role in the study design, the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in writing the report and in the decision to submit the article for publication. We also wish to acknowledge the Social Care Directorate (Children's Service and Think Family NI), Health and Social Care Board who commissioned and funded the Northern Ireland Youth Wellbeing Prevalence Survey.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
© 2022 The Authors. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Keywords
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Complex PTSD
- child and adolescent International Trauma Questionnaire
- Factor Mixture Modelling
- ICD-11
- Posttraumatic stress disorder
- factor mixture modelling