What is it about?
Traumatic life experiences can evoke posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and interfere with cognitive abilities (executive functioning). Trauma can also disrupt identity development (the selection of life goals, roles, and values that give our lives direction and purpose). This study found that using both identity variables (identity exploration and identity commitment) and PTSD symptom severity scores predicted executive functioning better than either one alone.
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Why is it important?
Trauma, PTSD, identity, and executive functioning have been previously studied, but almost exclusively, using just two variables at a time. This is the first study to combine all these variables to help determine their interrelationship.
Perspectives
Treatment for PTSD typically overlooks its effects on identity development, and while positive youth development programs often target identity variables, they frequently overlook the role of trauma as an impediment. This study suggests a possible new avenue for enhancing prevention and intervention efforts, and their effects on executive functioning may be the key.
Stephanie Washburn
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The Role of Identity in the Relationship between PTSD and Executive Functioning, Adolescent Psychiatry, November 2024, Bentham Science Publishers,
DOI: 10.2174/0122106766279589240529123124.
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