Trauma history predicts depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms better than a psychiatric diagnosis: Comparing wartime, routine time, and early COVID-19 in Israel.

Individuals with a psychiatric diagnosis and those with a history of trauma are at high risk for depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) following exposure to new traumatic events. Nevertheless, research is scarce on how having both a psychiatric diagnosis and a trauma history affect reactions to new traumatic events, and how different trauma types may affect individuals with a psychiatric diagnosis. We thus examined whether different stressful contexts (War and COVID-19) affected individuals with and without a psychiatric diagnosis differentially and whether results might be explained by prior trauma exposure.

Do positive and negative emotional reactions during war predict subsequent symptomatology? A prospective experience sampling study.

While peritraumatic negative emotions have been associated with subsequent posttraumatic stress and depression, the predictive role of real-time emotional reactions to specific stressors during prolonged stress exposure is still unclear, particularly that of positive emotions. The current study uses experience sampling methodology to examine individual general levels of negative and positive emotions, and emotional reactivity to specific stressors during war, as prospective predictors of posttraumatic stress and depression. Ninety-six civilians exposed to rocket fire during the 2014 Israel-Gaza war reported exposure to rocket warning sirens and levels of ten negative and six positive emotions twice a day for 30 days.

Emotional reactivity to war stressors: An experience sampling study in people with and without different psychiatric diagnoses.

There is a lack of knowledge regarding real-time emotional reactivity to high-intensity stressors, particularly in people with mental illness, a potentially vulnerable population. The current study aimed to examine negative emotional reactions to recurring high-intensity stressors within a continuous war situation, in people with different psychiatric diagnosis types. Experience sampling method was used to examine emotional reactions among 143 civilians exposed to rockets during the 2014 Israel-Gaza war, of them 18.

Dynamic Network Analysis of Negative Emotions and DSM-5 Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Clusters During Conflict.

Investigating dynamic associations between specific negative emotions and PTSD symptom clusters may provide novel insights into the ways in which PTSD symptoms interact with, emerge from, or are reinforced by negative emotions. The present study estimated the associations among negative emotions and the four DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters (intrusions, avoidance, negative alterations in cognitions and mood [NACM], and arousal) in a sample of Israeli civilians (n = 96) during the Israel-Gaza War of July-August 2014. Data were collected using experience sampling methodology, with participants queried via smartphone about PTSD symptoms and negative emotions twice a day for 30 days.

The Dynamic Relations Among Peritraumatic Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms: An Experience Sampling Study During Wartime.

The associations among peritraumatic posttraumatic stress symptoms (P-PTSS) in the immediate aftermath of trauma exposure, including those in the posttraumatic stress disorder clusters of intrusions, avoidance, negative cognitions and mood (NCM), and arousal, might indicate mechanisms through which enduring PTSD develops. During a period of war, exposed participants (N = 181) were sent twice-daily questionnaires for 30 days via smartphone. We repeatedly assessed the predictive associations between the P-PTSS clusters over time.

Peritraumatic Reaction Courses During War in Individuals With Serious Mental Illness: Gender, Mental Health Status, and Exposure.

Objective: We assessed in vivo symptom courses of early psychological responses during war and investigated the influence of exposure, gender, and a prior diagnosis of severe mental illness (SMI).

Method: Participants were 181 highly exposed individuals from the general population and community psychiatric rehabilitation centers. A 30-day twice-daily Internet-smartphone-based intensive assessment two weeks into the 2014 Israel-Gaza war estimated peritraumatic symptom clusters, sense of threat, negative emotions and cognitions, and siren exposure during two periods that varied in exposure level.

Sense of Threat as a Mediator of Peritraumatic Stress Symptom Development During Wartime: An Experience Sampling Study.

Exposure and sense of threat have been associated with stress symptoms, yet these relationships have not been clarified during the peritraumatic period. We investigated the mediating role of sense of threat in the link between exposure to rocket warning sirens and stress symptoms during wartime, and the effect of severe mental illness (SMI) status and gender on this mediation. A 30-day twice-daily smartphone-based intensive assessment of exposure to sirens, sense of threat, and peritraumatic stress symptoms was performed during the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict.