Subjective accounts of the emotional experience of PTSD
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Subjective accounts of the emotional experience of PTSD
IRAS ID
148391
Contact name
Trevor Landry
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Manchester
Research summary
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) appeared first in DSM-III (APA, 1980) and until the recent publication of DSM-V (APA, 2013a), PTSD has been categorised as an anxiety disorder. The classification and assumption that PTSD is an anxiety related disorder has influenced treatment options and strategies which tend to favour exposure based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) interventions (Power & Fyvie, 2012; NICE, 2005 and Ehlers & Clark, 2000). Although exposure based interventions have been found to be effective with reducing stress and anxiety (Bisson & Andrew, 2007) recent research has indicated that more than half of those with PTSD consider other emotions as problematic including; sadness, disgust and anger (Power & Fyvie, 2012; Dalgleish & Power, 2004). This research has indicated that exposure based interventions are not effective for treating non-anxious presentations of PTSD. These findings highlight a need to revise current interventions to deem whether they are fit for purpose and explore new and better strategies for non-anxious PTSD presentations.
This research aims to explore and understand the emotional experience of PTSD. This may be useful to consider when designing and commissioning future strategies and interventions for PTSD. Early literature searching has highlighted a gap in understanding of the ‘lived experience’ of trauma related emotions, thereby indicating the need for a qualitative approach. Grounded Theory will provide a suitable method for answering the current research question, which is concerned with developing an explanatory theory of the emotional experience of PTSD. Semi-structured interviews informed by a topic guide will allow exploration of meaning, experience, emotions, and outcomes. Findings may have future utility and inform better practice and understanding of the personal and emotional experience of PTSD
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/NW/0309
Date of REC Opinion
17 Jun 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion