Abstract
We investigated whether the impact of potentially traumatic events (PTEs) on trauma-related symptoms changes across the transitional adult lifespan (i.e., 16-100 years old) and if this association differs for self-reported COVID-19-related PTEs compared to other PTEs. A web-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 7,034 participants from 88 countries between late April and October 2020. Participants completed the Global Psychotrauma Screen (GPS), a self-report questionnaire assessing trauma-related symptoms. Data were analyzed using linear and logistic regression analyses and general linear models. We found that older age was associated with lower GPS total symptom scores, B = -0.02, p < .001; this association remained significant but was substantially weaker for self-reported COVID-19-related PTEs compared to other PTEs, B = 0.02, p = .009. The results suggest an association between older age and lower ratings of trauma-related symptoms on the GPS, indicating a blunted symptom presentation. This age-related trend was smaller for self-reported COVID-19-related PTEs compared to other PTEs, reflecting the relatively higher impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on older adults.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 738-749 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Journal of Traumatic Stress |
Volume | 36 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2023 |
Keywords
- Adolescent
- Adult
- Aged
- Aged, 80 and over
- COVID-19/epidemiology
- Cross-Sectional Studies
- Humans
- Mental Health
- Middle Aged
- Pandemics
- Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/epidemiology
- Young Adult