title: Main and Interactive Effects of Distress Tolerance and Negative Affect Intensity in Relation to PTSD Symptoms among Trauma-Exposed Adults.
abstract: The present investigation evaluated the main and interactive effects of distress tolerance and negative affect intensity in relation to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity and symptom cluster severity. Participants were 190 trauma-exposed adults (52.6 % women;Mage=25.3 years,SD=11.4) recruited from the community. Distress tolerance (i.e., perceived ability to withstand distressing emotional states) demonstrated significant incremental associations with global PTSD symptom severity as well as Re-Experiencing, Emotional Numbing, and Hyperarousal symptom cluster severity. Negative affect intensity (i.e., perceived intensity of negative emotional responses) demonstrated significant incremental associations with each of the PTSD symptom outcomes. Moreover, the incremental interactive effect of distress tolerance and negative affect intensity was significantly associated with PTSD symptom severity as well as PTSD-Emotional Numbing symptom cluster severity. These incremental effects were evident after accounting for the variance explained by anxiety sensitivity (i.e., fear of anxiety-related sensations).Post hocprobing analyses supported the moderating role of negative affect intensity in the association between distress tolerance and PTSD symptom severity, such that low levels of distress tolerance, in the context of elevated levels of negative affect intensity, were associated with the greatest levels of PTSD symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 2800 South MacGregor Way, Houston, TX 77021, USA.
authors.forename: Anka A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Vujanovic
authors.affiliation: Rhode Island Hospital and The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
authors.forename: Ashley S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.affiliation: Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Carrie M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Potter
authors.affiliation: Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
authors.forename: Erin C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Berenz
authors.affiliation: National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Niles
authors.affiliation: University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: Amit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bernstein
keywords: Affect intensity; Distress tolerance; PTSD; Trauma