The Differential Effects of Child Abuse and PTSD on Schizotypal Personality Disorder

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Abigail D. Powers, Emory University; Katherine M. Thomas, Emory University; Kerry J. Ressler, Emory University; Bekh Bradley-Davino, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2011
• Publisher: WB Saunders
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommerical-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2010.08.001
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Comprehensive Psychiatry
• ISSN: 0010-440X
• Volume: 52
• Issue: 4
• Start Page: 438
• End Page: 445
• Grant/Funding Information: Support also included Emory and Grady Memorial Hospital General Clinical Research Center, NIH National Centers for Research Resources (M01 RR00039), and the Burroughs Welcome Fund.; This work was primarily supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (MH071537).
• Keywords: PTSD; Childhood Maltreatment; Trauma; Schizotypal Personality Disorder; Child Abuse
• Research Categories: Psychology, Personality; Psychology, General

Abstract

Objective Previous findings suggest a relation between trauma exposure and risk for schizotypal personality disorder (SPD). However, the reasons for this relationship are not well understood. Some research suggests that exposure to trauma, particularly early trauma and child abuse, as well as PTSD may play a role. Methods We examined subjects (N=541) recruited from the primary care clinics of an urban public hospital as part of an NIMH-funded study of trauma related risk and resilience. We evaluated childhood abuse with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) and the Early Trauma Inventory (ETI) and SPD with the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality (SNAP). We assessed for lifetime PTSD using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Results We found that of the three forms of abuse analyzed (emotional, physical, and sexual), only emotional abuse significantly predicted SPD (p<.001, R=0.28) when all three abuse types were simultaneously entered into a regression model. Lifetime PTSD symptoms also significantly predicted SPD (p<.001, R=0.26). PTSD was specifically predictive of four of the eight SPD symptoms (p≤.001): excessive social anxiety, a lack of close friends or confidants, unusual perceptual experiences, and eccentric behavior or appearance. Using a Sobel test, we also found a partial mediation effect of PTSD on the relation between emotional abuse and SPD (z=3.45, p<.001). Conclusions These findings point to the important influence of emotional abuse on SPD and suggest that PTSD symptoms may provide a link between damaging childhood experiences and SPD symptoms in traumatized adults.