The closed response style and posttraumatic stress: Examining the interaction between experiential avoidance and...

Experiential avoidance and cognitive fusion synergistically form what is known as the closed response style. Prior study findings indicate that the closed response style, examined as an interaction between experiential avoidance and cognitive fusion, relates to posttraumatic stress symptom severity among a heterogeneous sample of trauma survivors. The present study sought to extend those findings by examining the association between the closed response style and posttraumatic stress symptom severity specifically among women who survived a Criterion A sexual trauma.

The sample was 136 women attending a southern U.S. university who reported Criterion A sexual trauma exposure. Participants completed self-report measures assessing the study variables.

The predicted interaction between experiential avoidance and cognitive fusion accounted for unique variance in posttraumatic stress symptom severity (total symptom severity, along with hyperarousal and alterations in cognitions and mood). Simple effects indicated that experiential avoidance and cognitive fusion only shared associations with posttraumatic stress symptom severity when coupled with high levels of the other process (i.e., cognitive fusion or experiential avoidance, respectively).

Results provide further support for the potential relevance of the closed response style to posttraumatic stress. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).