Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention Advance Access originally published online on July 6, 2005
Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention 2005 5(3):290-299; doi:10.1093/brief-treatment/mhi021
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Original Article |
A Cognitive Model to Explain Gender Differences in Rate of PTSD Diagnosis
From the School of Social Work, University of Texas, Arlington
Contact author: Donald K. Granvold, School of Social Work, University of Texas, Arlington, Box 19129, 211 S. Cooper St., Arlington, TX 76019-0129. E-mail: granvold{at}uta.edu.
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that has been estimated to affect between 15% and 24% of individuals who are exposed to traumatic events (e.g., Breslau, Kessler, Chilcoat, Schultz, Davis, & Andreski, 1998). It is significant that (a) not all individuals exposed to traumatic events develop PTSD symptoms and (b) women are twice as likely as men to develop PTSD. Other factors play a role in the development of this disorder. In this conceptual article, we outline the problem of PTSD and, using a cognitive model, explain PTSD causal factors with a particular emphasis on the greater risk of women for developing PTSD.
KEY WORDS: posttraumatic stress disorder, cognitive model, gender differences, trauma, stress