Unpacking the relationship between posttraumatic numbing and hyperarousal in a sample of help-seeking motor vehicle accident survivors: replication and extension.

The current study is a replication and extension of previous research that has found support for a relationship between posttraumatic numbing and hyperarousal. This study examined this association while controlling for depression in 345 motor vehicle accident survivors. Additionally, the relationships among specific hyperarousal symptoms and numbing were explored. Results provided further evidence for an association between hyperarousal and numbing, even while controlling for the influence of depression, and revealed that all hyperarousal symptoms (except hypervigilance) contribute to this association.