European Journal of Psychotraumatology
Volume 7, Issue 1, 2016

The factor structure of complex posttraumatic stress disorder in traumatized refugees (Article) (Open Access)

Nickerson A.* , Cloitre M. , Bryant R.A. , Schnyder U. , Morina N. , Schick M.
  • a School of Psychology, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  • b National Center for PTSD Dissemination and Training Division, Palo Alto, CA, United States
  • c School of Psychology, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  • d Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland
  • e Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland
  • f Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland

Abstract

Background: The construct of complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) has attracted much research attention in previous years, however it has not been systematically evaluated in individuals exposed to persecution and displacement. Given that CPTSD has been proposed as a diagnostic category in the ICD-11, it is important that it be examined in refugee groups. Objective: In the current study, we proposed to test, for the first time, the factor structure of CPTSD proposed for the ICD-11 in a sample of resettled treatment-seeking refugees. Method: The study sample consisted of 134 traumatized refugees from a variety of countries of origin, with approximately 93% of the sample having been exposed to torture. We used confirmatory factor analysis to examine the factor structure of CPTSD in this sample and examined the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive power and negative predictive power of individual items in relation to the CPTSD diagnosis. Results: Findings revealed that a two-factor higher-order model of CPTSD comprising PTSD and Difficulties in Self-Organization (x2 (47)=57.322, p=0.144, RMSEA=0.041, CFI=0.981, TLI=0.974) evidenced superior fit compared to a one-factor higher-order model of CPTSD (x2 (48)=65.745, p=0.045, RMSEA=0.053, CFI=0.968, TLI=0.956). Overall, items evidenced strong sensitivity and negative predictive power, moderate positive predictive power, and poor specificity. Conclusions: Findings provide preliminary evidence for the validity of the CPTSD construct with highly traumatized treatment-seeking refugees. © 2016 Angela Nickerson et al.

Author Keywords

PTSD posttraumatic stress disorder Refugees Torture

Index Keywords

[No Keywords available]
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85017559006&doi=10.3402%2fejpt.v7.33253&partnerID=40&md5=59c5325cf909ee3aeaadb9e76c8e4ea2
DOI: 10.3402/ejpt.v7.33253
ISSN: 20008066
Cited by: 28
Original Language: English