The Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Battered Women

Abstract

This study examined battered women's psychological symptoms using instruments developed to assess posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in other trauma victims. Women who had been in a physically violent relationship (n = 26) were assessed for PTSD using self-report measures and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID). Results indicated that 45% of those subjects interviewed met full DSM-III-R criteria for PTSD on the SCID, and that exposure to violence was significantly associated with PTSD symptomatology. When divided into high and low exposure groups based on degree of life threat, 60% of those in the high exposure group met criteria for diagnosable PTSD in contrast to a 14% rate in the low exposure group. These data suggest that battered women do experience symptoms of psychological trauma, and future cross-trauma research that includes this population, along with other previously identified trauma groups, would be beneficial.