Posttraumatic cognitive appraisal, depression and quality of life among accidental trauma patients: a latent profile analysis and mediation analysis
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background Fostering positive cognitive appraisal among accidental trauma patients is critical for improving their quality of life. This study aimed to identify latent profiles of posttraumatic cognitive appraisal among accidental trauma patients, and to explore the associations among different cognitive appraisal profiles, depression and quality of life. Methods A cross-sectional survey design was adopted. Assessment instruments included the Posttraumatic cognitive appraisal inventory (PTCAI), the Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS), and the Mos 36-item short form health survey (SF-36). Data in this study were analyzed using Mplus and SPSS. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was employed to identify the latent profiles of posttraumatic cognitive appraisal. Multinomial logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with the distinct posttraumatic cognitive appraisal profiles. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare depression and quality of life across the distinct profiles. A mediation model with a multicategorical independent variable was used to examine the indirect associations between cognitive appraisal profiles and quality of life through depression. Results A total of 459 accidental trauma patients were included. Three latent profiles of posttraumatic cognitive appraisal were identified: Negative cognitive appraisal group (14.6%), Neutral balanced cognitive appraisal group (56.2%), and Positive cognitive appraisal group (29.2%). Multinomial logistic regression analysis indicated that education, medical payment method, post-injury time, and injury severity score (ISS) were significant factors associated with different latent profiles ( p < 0.05). Significant differences in depression and quality of life were observed across the three profiles. Taking the Neutral balanced cognitive appraisal group as the reference group, the indirect associations of depression were statistically significant for both pathways. Conclusion Accidental trauma patients exhibit significant heterogeneity in posttraumatic cognitive appraisal. The indirect associations between cognitive appraisal profiles and quality of life through depression were statistically significant. Clinically, medical staff may consider stratified and individualized psychological interventions according to distinct cognitive appraisal profiles, which may help alleviate depressive symptoms and improve long-term quality of life.
Source: Frontiers in Psychology
Institution: Shandong First Medical University
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,801
OpenAlex ID: W7222959310