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Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Use of a Psychophysiological Script-driven Imagery Experiment to Study Trauma-related Dissociation in Borderline Personality Disorder
Published on: March 8, 2018
Does dissociation further our understanding of PTSD?
1School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, NSW 2052, Australia. r.bryant@unsw.edu.au
Abstract:
Peritraumatic dissociation, and other dissociative reactions, refer to alterations in awareness in the context of a traumatic experience. This review provides an overview of the current conceptualization of dissociation, critiques methodological approaches to studying dissociation, and reviews the evidence for the purported relationship between dissociative reactions and posttraumatic stress disorder. The evidence challenges the notion that a linear relationship exists between dissociation and psychiatric morbidity. Future research should abandon the global construct of dissociation, and study the specific responses that involve altered awareness under experimental conditions.
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