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Abstract
Objective
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and autobiographical memory specificity in older adults.
Method
Older adult trauma survivors (N = 23) completed the Autobiographical Memory Test, Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale, and Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination‐Revised.
Results
When cognitive ability was partialled out, the relationship between PTSD symptoms and reduced autobiographical memory specificity was significant. Specifically, the relationships between reliving symptoms and avoidance symptoms correlated significantly with reduced autobiographical memory specificity. There was no significant relationship between hyperarousal symptoms and reduced autobiographical memory specificity.
Conclusions
The findings suggest that similar to other populations, PTSD symptoms are also associated with reduced autobiographical memory specificity in older adults.
Abstract
Funding: Laura A. Jobson is funded by a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship award from the National Institute for Health Research. No other funding was received and neither author declares any industrial links or affiliations.
Conflict of interest: None.
This research was undertaken as part of a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the University of East Anglia, UK.
Funding: Laura A. Jobson is funded by a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship award from the National Institute for Health Research. No other funding was received and neither author declares any industrial links or affiliations.
Conflict of interest: None.
This research was undertaken as part of a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the University of East Anglia, UK.
Notes
Funding: Laura A. Jobson is funded by a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship award from the National Institute for Health Research. No other funding was received and neither author declares any industrial links or affiliations.
Conflict of interest: None.
This research was undertaken as part of a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the University of East Anglia, UK.
1. The relationships between ACE‐R and AMS in response to the positive, r(21) = .50, p < .01, and negative, r(21) = .35, p = .05, cues were significant. Partial correlations found that for positive cues, the correlations between AMS and total PTSD symptoms, r(20) = −.40, p = .03, and reliving symptoms, r(20) = −.43, p = .02, were significant. The relationship between AMS and avoidance symptoms was approaching significance, r(20) = −.29, p = .09. There was no significant relationship between hyperarousal symptoms and AMS, r(20) = −.25, p = .13. For the negative cue words, the correlations between AMS and total PTSD symptoms, r(20) = −.36, p = .05, reliving symptoms, r(20) = −.52, p < .01, and avoidance symptoms, r(20) = −.45, p = .02, were all significant. There was no significant relationship between hyperarousal symptoms and AMS, r(20) = .09, p = .35 (all one‐tailed correlations).