Kamikaze attack survivors: how accurate are their PTSD reports?
12 survivors of the USS Emmons (M age = 81.3 yr., SD = 3.26), which was sunk by kamikaze attacks during World War II, were given an adapted form of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian. Five of their wives (M age = 78.8 yr., SD = 3.42) and 16 of their children (M age = 50.2 yr., SD = 5.37) estimated the veterans' checklist scores. The combined wives' and children's mean score estimate was nearly identical to the veterans' mean checklist score. Analysis using the Wilcoxon signed rank test comparing the veterans' self-reports and their family members' estimated reports of them was statistically insignificant. The findings suggest that Emmons survivors' PTSD reports are reliable.
Chara
Paul J
PJ
Psychology Department, Northwestern College, 3003 Snelling Avenue North, Saint Paul, MN 55113, USA. pjc@nwc.edu
Chara
Kathleen A
KA
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003130:Combat Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D023481:Terrorism / Q000523:psychology*; D014342:Truth Disclosure; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*; D047789:World War II