Ann T. Chu

Development of the Trauma Appraisal Questionnaire

This study describes the development and psychometric properties of the Trauma Appraisal Questionnaire (TAQ). Items were generated based on interviews with 72 ethnically diverse community participants exposed to a range of trauma types. From the interviews, more than 600 items that tapped beliefs, emotions, and behaviors were generated for 9 appraisal categories (e.g., fear, betrayal, shame). Based on expert feedback, 108 items were retained for initial testing in a sample of 714 undergraduate volunteers. Using a factor analytic strategy, we arrived at a 6-scale, 54-item solution. The reliability and validity of the new measure were evaluated in community (N = 119) and undergraduate (Ns = 139 and 79) samples. The measure demonstrated excellent reliability (test–retest and internal consistency) and validity (convergent, discriminant, and concurrent).

CHILDREN'S PERCEPTION OF RESEARCH PARTICIPATION: EXAMINING TRAUMA EXPOSURE AND DISTRESS

Using the reactions to research Participation Questionnaire for Children (RRPQ-C), this study examined perceptions of research participation among 181 school-aged children with and without trauma histories. As part of two larger studies, children completed non-trauma related tasks to assess emotion understanding and cognitive ability. Parents (and not children) reported on childrens interpersonal (e.g., sexual abuse, physical abuse, witnessing domestic violence, witnessing community violence) and non-interpersonal (e.g., motor vehicle accidents, medical traumas, natural disasters) trauma exposure. Childrens perceptions of costs and benefits of research participation and understanding of informed consent did not vary as a function of trauma exposure. The number of traumatic events experienced was unrelated to childrens perceptions. Furthermore, children across trauma-exposure groups generally reported a positive cost-benefit ratio, and understanding of the consent information. Implications of these data are discussed.

Testing two approaches to revictimization prevention among adolescent girls in the child welfare system.

PURPOSE Girls in the child welfare system are at high risk of revictimization in adolescence. The present study compared two interventions designed to decrease revictimization in a diverse sample of adolescent child welfare-involved girls. The social learning/feminist (SL/F) intervention focused on concepts derived from social learning and feminist models of risk, such as sexism and beliefs about relationships. The risk detection/executive function (RD/EF) intervention focused on development of specific executive function abilities related to detecting and responding to risky situations/people. METHODS Participants were randomized to RD/EF (n = 67) or SL/F intervention (n = 67). A group of youth (n = 42) engaged in the research assessments only. Participants (n = 180) were assessed before intervention, immediately after intervention, 2 months after intervention, and 6 months after intervention. We examined revictimization (the presence/absence of sexual or physical assault in any relationship) over time. RESULTS Adolescent girls in the RD/EF condition were nearly five times less likely to report sexual revictimization compared with girls in the no-treatment group. A trend suggested that girls who participated in the SL/F intervention were 2.5 times less likely to report sexual revictimization relative to the no-treatment group. For physical revictimization, the odds of not being physically revictimized were three times greater in the SL/F condition and two times greater in the RD/EF condition compared with the no-treatment group. CONCLUSIONS The active interventions did not differ significantly from one another in rates of revictimization, suggesting that practitioners have at least two viable options to engage high-risk youth in revictimization prevention.

Trauma-related predictors of deontic reasoning: A pilot study in a community sample of children

OBJECTIVE Deontic reasoning (i.e., reasoning about duties and obligations) is essential to navigating interpersonal relationships. Though previous research demonstrates links between deontic reasoning abilities and trauma-related factors (i.e., dissociation, exposure to multiple victimizations) in adults, studies have yet to examine deontic reasoning abilities in children exposed to trauma. Given that social and safety rules (exemplars of deontic reasoning rules) may appear arbitrary for children in the face of trauma exposure, particularly interpersonal violence perpetrated by adults (i.e., caregivers, close relatives), we predicted that the ability to detect violations of these rules would vary as a function of trauma exposure type (no, non-interpersonal, and interpersonal). Additionally, given previous research linking dissociation and deontic reasoning in adults, we predicted that higher levels of dissociation would be associated with more errors in deontic problems. METHODS Children exposed to interpersonal violence (e.g., sexual abuse by an adult family member, witnessing domestic violence, or physical abuse in the home) were compared to children exposed to non-interpersonal trauma (e.g., motor vehicle accident, natural disaster) or no trauma on their ability to detect violations of deontic and descriptive rules in a Wason Selection Task and assessed for their level of dissociative symptoms. RESULTS Dissociation (but not trauma exposure type) predicted errors in deontic (but not descriptive) reasoning problems after controlling for estimated IQ, socio-economic status, and childrens ages. CONCLUSIONS The current study provides preliminary evidence that deontic reasoning is associated with dissociation in children. This pilot study points to the need for future research on trauma-related predictors of deontic reasoning. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS Deontic rules are essential to navigating interpersonal relationships; errors detecting violations of deontic rules have been associated with multiple victimizations in adulthood. Future research on violence exposure, dissociation, and deontic reasoning in children may have important implications for intervention and prevention around interpersonal functioning and later interpersonal risk.

Vulnerability and protective factors for child abuse and maltreatment.

Child abuse occurs across cultures and societies, remaining a critically important public health and policy issue due to its myriad detrimental outcomes. A substantial body of research now focuses on identifying vulnerability and protective factors that moderate childrens risk of abuse in tee hopes of being able to understand the mechanisms underlying why and how abuse occurs and to prevent it from happening in the future. Although a comprehensive review of all possible vulnerability and protective factors of child abuse is beyond the scope of this chapter, we describe key findings from the empirical literature organized around three major sections: (a) individual (e.g., gender, gender identity/orientation, age, disability status), (b) parental and familial context (e.g., parental abuse history, parenting practices, substance abuse, co-occurring intimate partner violence [IPV], family composition), and (c) environment and social network factors (e.g., poverty, neighborhood structure, community social support, religion, cultural identity). To understand vulnerability and resilience, we draw on studies that have used diverse sampling strategies (e.g., national surveys from the general population, clinical samples, university students) and methodologies (e.g., retrospective self-report and interviews, review of medical and child welfare records, prospective study designs). Finally, we discuss future directions for, and policy implications of, this body of research.

Exploring Revictimization Risk in a Community Sample of Sexual Assault Survivors

Previous research points to links between risk detection (the ability to detect danger cues in various situations) and sexual revictimization in college women. Given important differences between college and community samples that may be relevant to revictimization risk (e.g., the complexity of trauma histories), the current study explored the link between risk detection and revictimization in a community sample of women. Community-recruited women (N = 94) reported on their trauma histories in a semistructured interview. In a laboratory session, participants listened to a dating scenario involving a woman and a man that culminated in sexual assault. Participants were instructed to press a button “when the man had gone too far.” Unlike in college samples, revictimized community women (n = 47) did not differ in terms of risk detection response times from women with histories of no victimization (n = 10) or single victimization (n = 15). Data from this study point to the importance of examining revictimization in heterogeneous community samples where risk mechanisms may differ from college samples.

Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma-Related Distress: Maternal Betrayal Trauma, Parenting Attitudes, and Behaviors

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to elucidate mechanisms involved in the intergenerational transmission of trauma-related distress. This study investigated whether betrayal trauma (BT; abuse by a person close to the victim) and specific parenting attitudes and behaviors among mothers with child abuse histories predicted internalizing and externalizing symptoms in their children. Mothers and children (ages 7–11) were recruited for a project on parenting and stress (N = 72). Maternal betrayal trauma predicted both internalizing (β = 0.33, p < .01) and externalizing symptoms (β = 0.25, p < .05) even when controlling for mothers’ trauma-related symptoms. Negative attitudes toward limit setting predicted externalizing symptoms (β = −0.33, p < .05). Poorer communication (β = −0.39, p < .05) but higher parenting satisfaction (β = 0.38, p < .01) predicted internalizing symptoms. These findings demonstrate the importance of assessing maternal trauma and parenting characteristics as part of interventions with symptomatic children.

Perceptions of Trauma Research with a Sample of At-Risk Youth:

Growing body of research demon-strates that participants generally report favorable perceptions of participating in trauma research. However, questions remain on the long-term impact of asking at-risk youth about trauma in settings where such questions are unexpected. Perceptions of participation were examined in the current longitudinal study comprising a sample of adolescent girls recruited from the child welfare system to participate in a healthy relationship project. Over a year, teens (n = 180) completed four research sessions during which they were interviewed about interpersonal trauma exposure and trauma-related symptoms. Results indicated that adolescents reported stable, favorable benefit-to-cost ratios over time. Perceptions of research participation and symptom severity did not impact retention.

Interpersonal Violence, Depression, and Executive Function

This study considers links between the number of types of violence to which women have been exposed, depression, and executive functions (EFs). Substantial research has established EF deficits among depressed individuals as well as individuals exposed to trauma. Studies have also indicated a relationship between trauma exposure and depressive symptoms across a range of traumatic events, such as combat exposure, motor vehicle accidents, natural disasters, and assaults. This study examines this relationship in an ethnically diverse community sample of 93 women exposed to interpersonal violence who completed a battery of EF tasks that assessed processing speed, working memory, response inhibition, and set shifting. Women reported an average of 5.8 types of interpersonal violence events. The number of types of interpersonal violence events was significantly related to depressive symptoms, although not EF performance. Specific EFs, such as working memory and response inhibition, were positively related to depressive symptoms.

Intimate Partner Violence in Adolescent Romantic Relationships

Intimate partner violence (IPV) in adolescence, also referred to as teen dating violence (TDV), has been linked to a range of serious negative physical and mental health outcomes as well as increased risk for revictimization in adulthood. Advances in research designs and analytic tools have increased understanding of the complexities of TDV, including differing prevalence rates and risk factors among subgroups of adolescents. Applying an ecological framework to TDV has also helped to illustrate how multiple levels of risk factors (e.g., individual, relationship, societal) work together to influence the potential for TDV exposure. Though numerous prevention programs have been designed, limited empirical support exists for their efficacy. Continued rigorous research remains essential to expand our knowledge of TDV and to design, evaluate, and implement effective prevention programs for reducing the rates of TDV.