The aetiology of post-traumatic morbidity: predisposing, precipitating and perpetuating factors.
A group of 469 firefighters were studied 4, 11 and 29 months after having an extreme exposure to a bushfire disaster. The relative importance of the impact of the disaster, personality and ways of coping were investigated as determinants of post-traumatic morbidity. Neuroticism and a past history of treatment for a psychological disorder were better predictors of post-traumatic morbidity than the degree of exposure to the disaster or the losses sustained. These results raise doubts about the postulated central aetiological role a traumatic event plays in the onset of morbidity.
Department of Psychiatry, Flinders University of South Australia.
A C
AC
McFarlane
D001315:Australia; D004190:Disasters; D005390:Fires; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D013997:Time Factors