Associations between perceived social support, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD (CPTSD): implications for treatment

Figures & data

Table 1. Participant demographic variables across groups.

	ICD-11 ITQ completers (n = 187)
Variable	ICD-11 Not CPTSD (n = 93)	ICD-11 CPTSD (n = 94)	DSM-5 CAPS completers (n = 246)
ICD-11 NoPTSD Diagnosis (%)	64 (34.22)	_
ICD-11 PTSD Diagnosis (%)	29 (15.51)	_
ICD-11 CPTSD Diagnosis (%)	_	94 (50.3)
DSM-5 PTSD Diagnosis (%)	112 (59.9)		158 (64.2)
Mean age at time of assessment (SD)	48.71 (13.69)	47.58 (12.18)	47.37 (12.57)
Gender
Male (%)	46 (49.5)	48 (51.1)	123 (50.0)
Female (%)	47 (50.5)	46 (48.9)	123 (50.0)
Ethnicity (%)
White	91 (97.8)	89 (94.7)	235 (95.5)
Asian	1 (1.1)	0	1 (0.4)
Mixed	0	5 (5.3)	8 (3.3)
Other	1 (1.1)	0	2 (0.8)
Employment (%)
Unemployed	54 (58.1)	68 (72.3)	171 (69.5)
Employed	39 (41.9)	26 (27.7)	75 (30.5)
Living arrangements (%)
Married or Cohabiting	56 (60.2)	39 (41.5)	119 (48.4)
Single or Widowed or Divorced or Separated	37 (39.8)	55 (58.5)	127 (51.6)
Higher Education, A levels and above (%)
Higher Education	56 (60.2)	53 (56.4)	143 (58.1)
No Higher Education	37 (39.8)	41 (43.6)	103 (41.9)

DSM-5 = fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; ICD-11 = eleventh edition of the International Classification of Diseases; CAPS = Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5; ITQ = the International Trauma Questionnaire.

Table 2. Summary of multiple linear regression analyses for DSM-5 criteria and demographics as correlates of perceived social support (PSS).

Predictor	Beta	p-value
Gender	.074	.239
Age at time of assessment	.03	.643
Marital status	.253	.000
Level of education	.047	.439
Employment status	.132	.040
DSM-5 PTSD B criteria	−.141	.051
DSM-5 PTSD C criteria	−.05	.486
DSM-5 PTSD D criteria	−.181	.017
DSM-5 PTSD E criteria	.103	.157

DSM-5 = fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

Table 3. Summary of multiple linear regression analyses for ICD-11 criteria and demographics as correlates of perceived social support (PSS).

Predictor	Beta	p-value
Gender	0.008	0.915
Age at time of assessment	−0.033	0.669
Marital status	0.227	0.003
Level of education	0.017	0.809
Employment status	0.096	0.200
ICD-11 PTSD Re criteria	0.017	0.834
ICD-11 PTSD Avoidance (Av)	−0.510	0.544
ICD-11 PTSD Th criteria	0.004	0.958
ICD-11 PTSD AD criteria	0.189	0.038
ICD-11 PTSD NSC criteria	−0.157	0.059
ICD-11 PTSD DR criteria	−0.257	0.007

ICD-11 = eleventh edition of the International Classification of Diseases; Re = re-experiencing of the traumatic event in the here and now; Av = avoidance of traumatic reminders; Th = a persistent sense of current threat; AD = hyperactivation/hypoactivation; NSC = negative self-concept; DR = disturbances in relationships.

Table 4. Direct logistic regression of variables associated with likelihood of reporting symptoms of CPTSD.

			95.0% CI for Odds Ratio
Variable	p-value	Odds Ratio	Lower	Upper
Perceived Social Support (PSS)	.025	.783	.632	.970
Female Gender	.592	.842	.450	1.58
Age at time of assessment	.415	.990	.965	1.015
Higher Education	.884	.955	.510	1.786
Married/Cohabiting	.177	.642	.337	1.222
Currently employed	.189	.635	.323	1.250