Work

0871 PTSD Severity and Use of Negative Emotion Words in Trauma Narratives Predict Nightmares in Individuals with PTSD

Year: 2019

Type: conference-abstract

Abstract: Recurring, distressing nightmares are commonly experienced by individuals with PTSD. Previous research shows that higher use of positive than negative emotion words while describing traumatic experiences is associated with better health outcomes. We hypothesized that greater use of negative words in trauma narratives, along with higher PTSD severity, would predict the severity and frequency of nightmares in individuals with PTSD. Sixty-three individuals (38 Females; Mage = 31.60, SDage=8.91) with a clinical diagnosis of PTSD were administered the Disturbing Dream and Nightmare Scale (DDNSI) and Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for the DSM-5 (CAPS). Participants also typed a brief description of the most traumatic event they had experienced. These trauma narratives were processed with Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) 2015 to categorize positive and negative emotion words used in the descriptions. LIWC is a highly reliable and widely used computerized text analysis system that categorizes text into psychologically valuable (e.g. emotional state) and stylistic dimensions. Multiple linear regression analyses were run using SPSS. Participants used more negative than positive emotion words when describing their traumatic event (Mpositive=0.55, SD=1.41; Mnegative=10.11, SD=13.48). PTSD severity was a significant predictor of nightmares (⃞;;=0.49, F=17.61, p<.001), with an overall model fit of R2=.24. When use of negative emotion words was entered as a second variable, both PTSD severity (⃞;;=0.45, t=3.92, p<.001) and the use of negative language in trauma narratives (⃞;;=.23, t=2.03, p<.05) were significant predictors of DDNSI, accounting for an additional 5% of the variance in the data (F=11.34, p<.001, R2=.29). These preliminary findings suggest that not only PTSD severity, but also the manner in which individuals with PTSD conceptualize and disclose their traumatic experiences might have implications for the severity and frequency with which these individuals have nightmares. The reappraisal of trauma narratives might be an important target in interventions for individuals with PTSD who experience nightmares. This project was supported by an USAMRMC grant to WDSK (W81XWH-14-1-0570).

Source: SLEEP

DOI: 10.1093/sleep/zsz067.869