The mediating role of the metacognitions and experiential avoidance on the relationship between childhood trauma and PTSD symptoms

Given the likelihood of recurrence of symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the inadequacy of therapeutic approaches in the lasting recovery of symptoms of this disorder, the precise identification of the factors involved in initiating and maintaining PTSD is very important. In this regard, the present study aimed to investigate the intermediate role of metacognition and experiential avoidance in the relationship between childhood trauma and PTSD symptoms.

The subjects of this analytical-cross-sectional research were 432 patients (278 females and 154 males) who were seeking treatment at the health centers of Shiraz in spring, summer, autumn and winter of 2018, which were selected according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria and the Structured Interview for Axis I and II disorders (SCID). The PTSD Checklist —5 (PCL-5), Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Metacognitions Questionnaire (MCQ-30) and Acceptance and Action Questionnaire–II (AAQ-II) were used. Data were analyzed with the structural equation modeling (SEM) in Amos software (23-ver).

The results showed that the proposed model was well fitted (CFI=0.97, GFI=0.93, TLI=0.96, IFI=0.97, NFI=0.97, RMSEA=0.07), and all of the direct and indirect path coefficients were significant at the alpha level of 0.01. So that metacognition and experiential avoidance significantly mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and PTSD symptoms.

The findings of this study suggest that considering the role of childhood trauma, metacognition and experimental avoidance in the design of psychological interventions for the people with PTSD is helpful/essential.