Physical, mental, and social catastrophic cognitions as prognostic factors in cognitive-behavioral and pharmacological treatments for panic disorder.

The authors explored the prognostic value of 3 different types of catastrophic cognitions in the treatment of panic disorder with and without mild-to-moderate agoraphobia using a sample of 143 participants who received either cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or imipramine in a randomized controlled trial. Stronger fears of social catastrophes both prior to and following treatment with CBT or imipramine were associated with a poorer outcome. In contrast, cognitions involving physical or mental catastrophes were unrelated to outcome, regardless of whether these thoughts were measured prior to or following treatment. These findings are consistent with the notion that although the intensity of physical catastrophe cognitions may best discriminate between panic disorder and other anxiety disorders, it is the intensity of social catastrophe cognitions that is most closely tied to success in treating this disorder.

Individual differences among undergraduate women in methods of coping with stressful events: the impact of cumulative childhood stressors and abuse.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the current study was to determine if a history of greater exposure to different types of adverse and/or abusive experiences in childhood would influence coping strategies used by undergraduate women to deal with new stressful events in young adulthood. METHOD: A sample of 828 women undergraduates from a New England state university participated in this questionnaire study. Disengagement and engagement coping strategies used in response to recent stressors were compared in groups who had none, one, two, or three or more types of adverse and/or abusive childhood experiences (sexual abuse, physical abuse, witnessing domestic violence, having an alcoholic parent, and parental rejection). RESULTS: There was an increased reliance on disengagement methods of coping (wishful thinking, problem avoidance, social withdrawal, and self-criticism) as a function of more extensive child abuse histories. Engagement methods of coping (problem solving, cognitive restructuring, social support, and express-emotions), however, did not show a corresponding decrease as a function of increased exposure to different types of childhood stressors and/or abuse. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that undergraduate women with cumulative adverse and/or abusive childhood histories are particularly at-risk of relying on maladaptive disengagement coping strategies to deal with various new stressors later in life.

College women who had sexual intercourse when they were underage minors (13-15): age of their male partners, relation to current adjustment, and statutory rape implications.

In a survey of 1,439 female college students, 24% reported that they had what they considered consensual sexual intercourse between ages 13 and 15 (2% at age 13, 7% at age 14, and 15% at age 15). Contrary to the impression left by studies of teenage mothers, the majority of their male sexual partners were not substantially older than them but instead were more typically "somewhat older" (2-4 years apart) or similar aged (less than 2 years apart). The percentage of "much older" partners (5 or more years older) was 31% for those who had intercourse at age 13, 17% for those who had intercourse at age 14, and 13% for those who had intercourse at age 15. Women who had intercourse at age 13 endorsed more current symptoms of psychological distress than those who first had intercourse at age 14 or 15. There were no significant differences between the groups in current levels of sexual satisfaction. Partner's age difference was not significantly associated with current levels of either psychological distress or sexual satisfaction. The implications of these results were discussed in light of recent calls in the United States for more strict and rigorous enforcement of statutory rape laws.

Parental caring as a possible buffer against sexual revictimization in young adult survivors of child sexual abuse.

This study examined whether parental caring provided a buffer against the revictimization effect. Nine hundred and seventy-four undergraduate women provided information about child sexual abuse, physical abuse, and whether they witnessed violence between their parents during childhood. They also reported whether they had ever been the victim of sexual assault in adulthood, and offered their perceptions of the degree of care they received as a child from each parent. Results indicated that women who had been sexually abused in childhood were twice as likely to be sexually assaulted in adulthood and that women with 2 or more types of childhood trauma were 3 times as likely to be sexually revictimized. Parental caring was not found to buffer against the revictimization effect.