title: Factor structure of posttraumatic stress among Western New York undergraduates following the September 11th terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
abstract: The structure of posttraumatic stress is of both theoretical and clinical interest. In the present study, seven models of posttraumatic stress were compared using confirmatory factor analysis. A sample of 528 Western New York undergraduate students was assessed 1 and 3 months after the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks. At the Month 1 assessment, the current three-factor Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) model, which consists of Intrusions, Avoidance/Numbing, and Hyperarousal, did not provide a good fit to the data; however, a four-factor model consisting of factors labeled Intrusions, Avoidance, Dysphoria, and Hyperarousal did fit the data well and provided better fit than the three-factor model and other competing models. Importantly, Dysphoria spans symptoms from the traditional DSM Numbing and Hyperarousal clusters. The four-factor model continued to fit the data well at Month 3. These findings parallel the results of earlier studies which suggest that a four-factor model better reflects the nature of posttraumatic stress than do simpler models, including the DSM. The present work is consistent with a dimensional model of stress responses and calls for further longitudinal work in this area.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260-4110, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Baschnagel
authors.forename: Roisin M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.forename: Craig R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Colder
authors.forename: Larry W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Hawk
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009518:New York; D009519:New York City; D011581:Psychological Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D023481:Terrorism / Q000523:psychology*