A longitudinal analysis of factors associated with post traumatic growth after acquired brain injury

ABSTRACT

Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG) is a form of positive psychological change that occurs for some individuals following traumatic experiences. High levels of PTG have been reported among survivors of acquired brain injury (ABI). Yet it remains unclear why some survivors of ABI develop PTG and others do not. The present study investigated early and late factors that are associated with long-term PTG in people with moderate to severe ABIs. Participants (n = 32, M_age = 50.59, SD = 12.28) completed self-report outcome measures at two time-points seven years apart (one-year and eight-years post-ABI). Outcome measures assessed emotional distress, coping, quality of life and ongoing symptoms of brain injury, as well as PTG at the later timepoint. Multiple regression analyses indicated that one-year post-ABI, fewer symptoms of depression, more symptoms of anxiety, and use of adaptive coping strategies accounted for a significant amount of variance in later PTG. At eight years post-ABI, fewer symptoms of depression, fewer ongoing symptoms of brain injury, better psychological quality of life and use of adaptive coping strategies explained a substantial amount of variance in PTG. For individuals with ABIs, PTG may be promoted by implementing long-term neuropsychological support which aims to facilitate use of adaptive coping strategies, supports psychological wellbeing and allows individuals to find meaning post-ABI.

KEYWORDS:

• Acquired brain injury
• Post-traumatic growth
• Coping
• Psychological distress
• Neuropsychology

Acknowledgements

We thank those participants from the inpatient neurorehabilitation programme at the National Rehabilitation Hospital who generously volunteered their time to participate. Without these individuals, this research would not have been possible.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The datasets analysed during the current study is not publicly available so that the anonymity of participants involved may be preserved. The dataset may be available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.