Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Are avoidance and numbing distinct PTSD symptom clusters?

Gordon J G Asmundson1, Jennifer A Stapleton, Steven Taylor

  • 1Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. gordon.asmundson@uregina.ca

Journal of Traumatic Stress
|February 26, 2005
PubMed
Summary

Avoidance and numbing are distinct symptom clusters in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Differentiating these PTSD symptoms can improve treatment outcomes and diagnostic criteria.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Genitourinary microbiota in older women: a persistent knowledge gap that limits clinical and research progress.

Infection and immunity·2026
Same author

A hierarchical uncertainty framework of anxiety: Preregistered meta-analytic structural model of intolerance of uncertainty and worry across anxiety disorders.

Clinical psychology review·2026
Same author

Latent trajectories of PTSD over 12 months following road trauma and their association with recovery trajectories.

European journal of psychotraumatology·2026
Same author

Confronting the infodemic in clinical psychology: Clinical research responsibilities in an era of proliferation.

Clinical psychology review·2026
Same author

The meta-inner humor therapy: Insights from a three-arm randomized controlled trial for comorbid emotional disorders.

Journal of anxiety disorders·2026
Same author

Finding the optimal regimen for <i>Mycobacteroides abscessus</i> treatment (FOR<i>Ma</i>T) in people with <i>Mycobacteroides abscessus</i> pulmonary disease: a multicentre, randomised, multi-arm, adaptive platform trial.

BMJ open·2025

Area of Science:

  • Psychiatry
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Neuroscience

Background:

  • Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often characterized by avoidance and numbing symptoms.
  • Current diagnostic frameworks may not fully differentiate these symptom clusters.
  • Understanding distinct symptom clusters is crucial for effective PTSD treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present the conceptual basis and empirical evidence distinguishing avoidance and numbing as separate PTSD symptom clusters.
  • To explore the implications of this distinction for diagnosis and treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Review of factor analytic studies on PTSD symptom structure.
  • Analysis of treatment outcome data related to avoidance and numbing.
  • Examination of correlational data with depression and physiological attention indices.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Factor analytic data predominantly support avoidance and numbing as distinct symptom clusters.
  • Different treatments show varied efficacy for avoidance versus numbing.
  • Pretreatment numbing severity predicts poorer treatment outcomes.
  • Avoidance and numbing exhibit different correlations with depression and attention.

Conclusions:

  • Avoidance and numbing represent distinct symptom clusters within PTSD.
  • Recognizing this distinction is vital for refining diagnostic criteria.
  • This differentiation can advance the understanding and treatment of PTSD.