Prevalence and predictors of posttraumatic stress disorder among victims of violence applying for state compensation

Many studies have focused on the predictive value of victims' emotions experienced shortly after violence exposure to identify those vulnerable for development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, many victims remain unidentified during the initial recovery phase, yet may still be highly in need of psychological help after substantial time since victimization has passed. Professionals involved in the settlement of civil damage claims filed by victims of violence may play an important role in referring victims with current psychological problems to appropriate treatment services, as they are likely to maintain relations with victims until all compensation possibilities have been exhausted. As an exploratory examination of this topic, the current study investigates the potential utility of file characteristics as predictors of chronic PTSD among 686 victims of violence who had applied for state compensation with the Dutch Victim Compensation Fund (DVCF) in 2006. Identification of significant predictors is preceded by estimating prevalence rates of PTSD. Results indicate that approximately 1 of 2 victims applying for state compensation in the Netherlands still have PTSD many years after victimization and claim settlement. Age, female sex, time since victimization, acquaintance with the perpetrator, violence-related hospitalization, and compensation for immaterial damage prove to be predictive of PTSD, although female sex and immaterial damage compensation fail to reach significance after adjusting for recalled peritraumatic distress severity. Implications for policy practice as well as strengths and limitations of the study are discussed.