摘要：Background: Studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are mainly focused on victims of trauma. Very few studies explored the links between PTSD symptoms and re-offending risk in perpetrators of violence. Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the effect of PTSD symptoms on re-offending risk in prisoner populations with a focus on indirect effects of worry and a negative perception of other people’s support on the relationship between PTSD and re-offending risk.Methods: 75 prisoners (25 females, mean age: 44.36 years; 50 males, mean age: 34.7 years) were assessed for exposure to child abuse and neglect, PTSD symptoms, worry, a negative perception of other people’s support and re-offending risk. Mediation analyses tested the indirect effects of worry and a negative perception of other people’s support on the relationship between PTSD and re-offending risk.Results: 72% participants presented PTSD symptoms and 30.7% were at risk of re-offending. Mediation analyses supported the hypothesis of a mediation pathway from PTSD to worry and a negative perception of other people’s support to an increased risk of re-offending.Conclusion: The results indicate that prisoners report high rates of PTSD symptoms; furthermore, they highlight an important relationship between PTSD and re-offending risk. Findings suggest that future research should test further the indirect effects of negative cognitive and emotional states on the relationship of PTSD and re-offending risk and explore more in depth the role of PTSD to assess and treat prisoners.Keywords: PTSD; re-offending risk; worry; perceived social support; childhood abuse and neglect(Published: 20 December 2013)Citation: European Journal of Psychotraumatology 2013, 4: 21382 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/ejpt.v4i0.21382 This paper is part of the cluster 'Invited papers 13th European Conference on Traumatic Stress'. More papers for this cluster can be found here.
关键词：PTSD; re-offending risk; worry; perceived social support; childhood abuse and neglect
