The relationship between trauma and personality in victims of the Boeing 737-2D6C crash in Coventry.
The aims of this paper were to (a) ascertain the extent of psychological distress and (b) identify the association between personality variables and psychological distress among individuals who had been exposed to an aircraft disaster in Coventry, U.K. Hundreds of people escaped death but were exposed to the impact of the disaster when a Boeing 737-2D6C 7T-VEE crashed into a woodland area on the edge of a large housing estate in Coventry, U.K. in 1994. Eighty-two residents were randomly chosen for interviews in which they were assessed using the Impact of Event Scale, the General Health Questionnaire, and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-R Short Scale (EPQ-R). The results showed that the Coventry residents' scores reached similar levels of intrusion and avoidance compared with standardized samples and the Lockerbie samples. Fifty-two percent reached the GHQ case level score, which was again similar to the Lockerbie residents. The Coventry residents were significantly less extroverted and neurotic than standardized samples. Stepwise multiple regression showed that there were associations between intrusion and neuroticism and intrusion and extroversion, as well as between avoidance and neuroticism.
University of Sheffield, Institute of General Practice & Primary Care, Community Sciences Centre, Northern General Hospital, England.
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Chung
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Easthope
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Chung
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Clark-Carter
D000328:Adult; D000401:Aircraft; D004190:Disasters; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009497:Neurotic Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D010551:Personality; D010552:Personality Assessment; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*