title: Traumatic intrusions as 'worse case scenario's'.
abstract: While some clinicians assume that traumatic intrusions are historically accurate revisualizations of traumatic incidents, others have suggested that these types of intrusions may represent a worse case scenario (i.e. exaggerated) version of the trauma. To explore this issue, a survey was conducted among undergraduate students (N = 189). Of the 69 respondents who had been the victim of or witness to a relatively recent trauma, 15 (22%) reported an exaggerated perception of the traumatic incident. Exaggerated intrusions were found to have more flashback qualities and tended to have a higher frequency than 'realistic' intrusions. These findings are well in line with the idea that intrusions are not necessarily veridical copies of traumatic events.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Maastricht, The Netherlands. H.Merckelbach@Psychology.Unimaas.nl
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Merckelbach
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Muris
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Horselenberg
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rassin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001362:Avoidance Learning; D015982:Bias; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012649:Self Concept; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000523:psychology*