Although the negative consequences of traumatic exposure across various domains of functioning have been well-documented, gaps and discrepancies continue to exist in the understanding of the impact of complex trauma, such as interpersonal violence (IPV), and how outcomes may vary across diverse populations and identities. In this cross-sectional study investigating the impact of traumatic exposure on physiological domains of functioning, a sample of female-identifying college students completed a number of self-reported measures (assessing past and present trauma exposure, complex posttraumatic stress disorder [CPTSD] symptoms, racial-ethnic minority status, and age of onset of first traumatic exposure) and provided resting high-frequency heart rate variability (hfHRV) data, which served as a biomarker for the potential impact of trauma exposure on physiological domains. Correlational and multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the strength of relationships between variables and the predictive value of the models. Results indicated endorsement of IPV trauma was significantly associated with earlier age of onset, more severe levels of CPTSD symptoms, and higher hfHRV, but not racial-ethnic minority status. Racial-ethnic minority status was significantly related to more severe CPTSD symptoms. Type of trauma exposure was the only variable that emerged as having predictive value for changes in hfHRV. These findings suggest that experiencing IPV may have unique implications for trauma symptomatology and functioning above and beyond other forms of traumatic exposure, but that continued research must be conducted in order to draw more robust conclusions about the effects of exposure on physiological regulation across various racial-ethnic identities. / M.S. / Research has highlighted the consequences that extremely negative, stressful experiences, also called traumatic events, can have on the way humans think, emote, behave, and physically react. It can be more difficult to draw conclusions about the effects of interpersonal violence (IPV), or violence that occurs at the hands of another (i.e., family, partner, or community violence), due to the complex, severe, and long-term nature of symptoms that survivors experience. There is also limited research about what complex trauma looks like across diverse populations. This study aimed to investigate the impact of traumatic exposure on physiology, which falls under biology and broadly includes the functions of living things. A sample of female-identifying college students completed a number of self-reported measures (assessing trauma exposure, complex posttraumatic stress disorder [CPTSD] symptoms, racial-ethnic minority status, and age of onset of first traumatic exposure) and provided resting high-frequency heart rate variability (hfHRV) data, which measures variation in time between beats and served as a measure for the potential impact of trauma exposure on physiology. Results suggested that IPV exposure was associated with earlier age of first traumatic experience, more severe levels of CPTSD symptoms, and higher hfHRV. Racial-minority status was significantly related to more severe CPTSD symptoms. Type of trauma exposure significantly predicted changes in hfHRV. Findings suggest that experiencing IPV may uniquely influence trauma symptoms and functioning above and beyond other forms of traumatic exposure. Continued research will allow for stronger conclusions about the effects of traumatic exposure on physiology across various racial-ethnic identities.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/101776 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Dike, Janey |
| Contributors | Psychology, Jones, Russell T., Friedman, Bruce H., Dunsmore, Julie C. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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