Erschienen in:
01.12.2012 | Original Paper
Neighborhood social cohesion and posttraumatic stress disorder in a community-based sample: findings from the Detroit Neighborhood Health Study
verfasst von:
Lauren E. Johns, Allison E. Aiello, Caroline Cheng, Sandro Galea, Karestan C. Koenen, Monica Uddin
Erschienen in:
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
|
Ausgabe 12/2012
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Abstract
Purpose
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common and debilitating. Although research has identified individual-level risk factors for PTSD, the role of macro-social factors in PTSD etiology remains unknown. This study tests whether perceived neighborhood social cohesion (NSC), measured at the both the individual and neighborhood levels, plays a role in determining past-year risk of PTSD among those exposed to trauma.
Methods
Data (n = 1,221) were obtained from an ongoing prospective epidemiologic study in the city of Detroit. Assessment of traumatic event exposure and PTSD was consistent with DSM-IV criteria. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) and logistic regression models were used to estimate the association of neighborhood-level perceived NSC with the risk of PTSD, adjusting for individual-level perceptions of NSC and other covariates.
Results
The odds of past-year PTSD were significantly higher among those residing in a neighborhood with low social cohesion compared to high (OR = 2.44, 95 % CI: 1.58, 3.78), independent of individual sociodemographic characteristics, number of traumas, and individual-level perceptions of NSC. The odds of past-year PTSD were not significantly associated with individual-level perceptions of NSC.
Conclusions
These results demonstrate that social context shapes risk of PTSD and suggest that changing the social context may shift vulnerability to this disorder.