title: Survivor-spouse dissociation and posttraumatic stress disorder: Personal and dyad relationships.
abstract: This study examined the relationships between dissociation and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among injured survivors of terror attacks and their spouses (N = 210), specifically exploring survivor-spouse dyadic associations. Structural equation modeling and the actor-partner interdependence model were used to test the bidirectional dyadic association of both the survivors' and the spouses' dissociation with PTSD symptoms. The results demonstrated a positive association both between the survivors' trait dissociation and PTSD symptoms and between the spouses' trait dissociation and their PTSD symptoms. However, no significant associations were found at the bidirectional level. Taken together, our findings shed new light on the role of trait dissociation in PTSD. Although trait dissociation is associated with higher PTSD symptoms for both survivors and their spouses, its role may be limited in the bidirectional partner context. Theoretical and clinical implications of the findings are discussed.
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Haifa , Haifa , Israel.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Weinberg
authors.affiliation: b Sapir Academic College, D.N. Hof Ashkelon , Israel.
authors.forename: Avi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Besser
authors.affiliation: c Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot , Israel.|d The Hebrew University of Jerusalem , Jerusalem , Israel.
authors.forename: Yochai
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ataria
authors.affiliation: e New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University Medical Center , New York , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Yuval
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Neria
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003710:Demography; D004213:Dissociative Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012944:Social Support; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D023481:Terrorism
keywords: Actor–partner interdependence model; dissociation; posttraumatic stress disorder; spouse; survivor; trauma