Patrick A. Boudewyns

A comparison of the effects of stress vs. relaxation instruction on the finger temperature response

Finger temperature feedback is a new therapy procedure being used to treat migraine headache sufferers and as an aid to therapeutic relaxation and anxiety reduction. Yet few systematic studies deal with the finger temperature response as either a clinical procedure or a psychophysiological measure. Three experiments are reported. Experiment 1 was an exploratory in vestigation of the basic parameters of finger temperature on a sample of 133 normal adult subjects. In Experiment 2, finger temperature and self-report of arousal were observed in subjects who progressed from a presumably relaxation-producing situation (relaxation instructions) to a presumably stressful situation (electric shock and threat of shock) and back to a presumably relaxation-producing situation. Experiment 3 was primarily a replication of Experiment 2, but also included a control group and measures of skin conductance, and pulse rate. As predicted, finger temperature decreased under assumed stress conditions and increased under assumed relaxation conditions. Finger temperature did not correlate significantly with the other psychophysiological measures, but was related to self-report. Finger temperature feedback was discussed in terms of its validity as an indicator of arousal level and its potential as a therapy agent.

Assessment of older combat veterans with the clinician-administered PTSD scale

A study of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among older combat veterans of World War II and the Korean Conflict was conducted. The Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) was given to 125 older combat veterans, along with a computerized variant of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R for PTSD, the SCID-DTREE. (The SCID-DTREE was itself validated against the full SCID). Results showed the CAPS to be a good discriminator of PTSD: Out of the 125 cases, only 9 were misclassified using the SCID-DTREE as the base measure, a 93% efficiency. An alpha on the full CAPS was .95. This suggests that the CAPS is an appropriate scale for use with older combat veterans.

Negative parenting behavior, combat exposure, and PTSD symptom severity : test of a person-event interaction model

The “personal characteristics” and “extreme event” hypotheses have been proposed as alternative explanations for the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among combat veterans. The person-event interaction model attempts to integrate both perspectives by hypothesizing that premilitary individual vulnerability characteristics play a greater role in influencing risk of PTSD or PTSD symptom severity at lower than at higher levels of exposure to traumatic combat stressors. Focusing on a sample of 57 Vietnam veterans undergoing inpatient treatment for diagnosed PTSD, we assessed this model by examining interactions between negative parenting behaviors in childhood (e.g.-test), inconsistent love) and degree of combat exposure in predicting PTSD symptom severity. Hierarchical regression analyses supported the model, indicating that the fathers negative parenting behaviors were more predictive of PTSD symptom severity at relatively lower levels of combat exposure. Implications of the findings for further research on multivariate, interactional models of PTSD etiology among Vietnam combat veterans are discussed.

A comparison of MMPI and MMPI-2 in PTSD assessment

A sample of 47 Vietnam veterans with the diagnosis of combat-related Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was administered the MMPI and MMPI-2. Pairwise comparisons were performed on the clinical scales, Harris Lingoes subscales, and scales relevant to the assessment of PTSD. Correlational analyses were performed as well. Hit rates of high-point pairs were compared across the tests. The results suggest a high degree of congruence between tests. Differences were seen on evaluations of some scales between tests that may influence interpretation and treatment.

The interaction of posttraumatic stress disorder and depression among older combat veterans

The question whether depression is related to trauma as part of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) itself or whether it represents autonomous symptoms occurring separately (from PTSD) has not been answered. We addressed two issues: (a) What is the relationship between PTSD and depression as measured by continuous measures on outcomes? and (b) By removing depression components from the PTSD diagnosis, what is the impact on standard outcomes? Older veterans from World War II or Korea were interviewed and given self-report measures on PTSD and depression. The CAPS-1 and the MMPI-D were used as the continuous measures for PTSD and depression. The outcome measures were health status, overall adjustment, social support, and physiological status. Results showed that depression influenced health status and social support: PTSD did not contribute to the equation. The CAPS-1 also was further divided into CAPS-PTSD and CAPS-D (depression) based on item content. For adjustment and health status, PTSD asserted a greater influence; for social support and heart rate, depression was the greater influence. Discussion addressed the fact that depression is an important consideration in the expression of PTSD.

MMPI profiles in PTSD as a function of comorbidity.

A sample of 135 Vietnam veteran inpatients with combat-related PTSD was sorted into three groups, depending upon the presence of concurrent psychiatric disorders: Depression (n = 68), Psychosis (n = 31), and Other (n = 36). Pairwise comparisons were made on the MMPI with respect to the validity indicators, clinical scales, four relevant Harris-Lingoes subscales, the Psychoticism content scale, and the MMPI-PTSD subscale. Results indicate variations in scale elevations as a function of comorbid diagnosis. Various items and scales appear to differentiate the Psychosis group due to greater psychopathology. In general, the results spotlight the heterogeneous aspects that comorbidity brings to PTSD assessment.