‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors
ABSTRACTBackground: After exposure to a potentially traumatic event, survivors may experience thoughts about ‘what could have happened’, referred to as counterfactual thoughts (CFTs). CFTs have been found to have a negative impact on survivors’ mental health. This is the first study to investigate w...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2024-12-01
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| Series: | European Journal of Psychotraumatology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/20008066.2024.2326736 |
| _version_ | 1797254436798595072 |
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| author | Ines Blix Kristin Alve Glad Andrea Undset Tore Wentzel-Larsen Akiah Astral Ottesen Tine K. Jensen Grete Dyb |
| author_facet | Ines Blix Kristin Alve Glad Andrea Undset Tore Wentzel-Larsen Akiah Astral Ottesen Tine K. Jensen Grete Dyb |
| author_sort | Ines Blix |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACTBackground: After exposure to a potentially traumatic event, survivors may experience thoughts about ‘what could have happened’, referred to as counterfactual thoughts (CFTs). CFTs have been found to have a negative impact on survivors’ mental health. This is the first study to investigate whether parents of trauma survivors experience CFTs and the association with psychological distress in this group.Objective: The main aim of the present study is to investigate CFTs in parents of trauma survivors and the relationship between the frequency and vividness of CFTs and psychological distress.Method: The participants (N = 310, 191 females) were parents of the youths targeted in the terror attack on Utøya island, Norway, in 2011. Frequency and vividness of CFTs, posttraumatic stress reactions (PTSR), and symptoms of anxiety and depression were measured 8.5–9 years post-terror.Results: The majority of the parents (74%) reported having experienced CFTs at some time point since the attack. For almost one-third of the parents, CFTs were still present more than eight years after the attack. Higher frequency and vividness of CFTs were uniquely associated with higher levels of PTSR, anxiety, and depression.Conclusion: The present findings suggest that frequent and vivid CFTs may contribute to mental health problems in parents of trauma survivors and should be addressed in therapy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T21:49:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-489b4148100146dbab898d2b1d0d367b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2000-8066 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T21:49:56Z |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of Psychotraumatology |
| spelling | doaj.art-489b4148100146dbab898d2b1d0d367b2024-03-20T15:45:37ZengTaylor & Francis GroupEuropean Journal of Psychotraumatology2000-80662024-12-0115110.1080/20008066.2024.2326736‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivorsInes Blix0Kristin Alve Glad1Andrea Undset2Tore Wentzel-Larsen3Akiah Astral Ottesen4Tine K. Jensen5Grete Dyb6Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayNorwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo, NorwayABSTRACTBackground: After exposure to a potentially traumatic event, survivors may experience thoughts about ‘what could have happened’, referred to as counterfactual thoughts (CFTs). CFTs have been found to have a negative impact on survivors’ mental health. This is the first study to investigate whether parents of trauma survivors experience CFTs and the association with psychological distress in this group.Objective: The main aim of the present study is to investigate CFTs in parents of trauma survivors and the relationship between the frequency and vividness of CFTs and psychological distress.Method: The participants (N = 310, 191 females) were parents of the youths targeted in the terror attack on Utøya island, Norway, in 2011. Frequency and vividness of CFTs, posttraumatic stress reactions (PTSR), and symptoms of anxiety and depression were measured 8.5–9 years post-terror.Results: The majority of the parents (74%) reported having experienced CFTs at some time point since the attack. For almost one-third of the parents, CFTs were still present more than eight years after the attack. Higher frequency and vividness of CFTs were uniquely associated with higher levels of PTSR, anxiety, and depression.Conclusion: The present findings suggest that frequent and vivid CFTs may contribute to mental health problems in parents of trauma survivors and should be addressed in therapy.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/20008066.2024.2326736Traumaparentscounterfactual thinkingposttraumatic stresssecondary traumaTrauma |
| spellingShingle | Ines Blix Kristin Alve Glad Andrea Undset Tore Wentzel-Larsen Akiah Astral Ottesen Tine K. Jensen Grete Dyb ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors European Journal of Psychotraumatology Trauma parents counterfactual thinking posttraumatic stress secondary trauma Trauma |
| title | ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| title_full | ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| title_fullStr | ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| title_short | ‘My child could have died’: counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| title_sort | my child could have died counterfactual thoughts and psychological distress in parents of trauma survivors |
| topic | Trauma parents counterfactual thinking posttraumatic stress secondary trauma Trauma |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/20008066.2024.2326736 |
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