Date of Award

6-2024

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Amy E. Naugle, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Scott T. Gaynor, Ph.D.

Third Advisor

Michelle Byrd, Ph.D.

Fourth Advisor

Amy Damashek, Ph.D.

Keywords

PTSD, trauma, values, written exposure therapy

Abstract

Written Exposure Therapy is a brief, efficacious intervention for the treatment of PTSD symptoms. The WET protocol calls for the infusion of values into therapeutic work, however, does not detail how to incorporate these values work into the highly scripted treatment. This study compared the standard WET protocol with WET infused with values. The study examined differences across the two conditions on seven variables (PTSD scores, depression scores, value importance and consistency, quality of life, psychological flexibility, customer satisfaction, and therapeutic alliance). The sample was largely homogenous in gender, ethnicity, sexuality, and reported index trauma. The sample was largely white (75.00%), female (81.25%), and heterosexual (68.75%), with domestic violence (43.75%) and witnessing suicide (18.75%) being the primary reported traumas. A total of 23 participants were enrolled in the study. Overall, 18 completed at least one session and 16 participants completed all five sessions of the treatment and follow-up surveys. Large effect sizes were found depression (g=.88) and PTSD (g=.72) reported symptoms during treatment and quality of life (g=.91) at the two-month follow-up in favor of the WET+ condition. Differences in dropout rates were statistically significant (x2=3.91; df=1; p=0.048). Six participants dropped from the standard WET condition, and one dropped from the value-enhanced WET condition. The implication of these findings is that treatment tolerability and symptom reduction was possibly increased by the addition of values.

Access Setting

Dissertation-Open Access

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