ICD-11 posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD in a sample of Prison staff: A latent profile approach

Although empirical support for The ICD-11 distinction between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD (CPTSD) is growing; however, research into the ICD-11 CPTSD model in prison staff is lacking. This study used latent profile analysis (LPA) to determine if there are distinct groups of trauma-exposed prison governors (i.e., wardens in the U.S. and Canada) who have symptom profiles consistent with the distinction between PTSD and CPTSD, and to identify predictors and posttraumatic maladaptive beliefs outcomes associated with the latent profiles. Trauma-exposed Prison Governors (N = 385) completed the International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ) and a measure of traumatic life events. LPA was used to extract profiles using the ITQ six symptom clusters of CPTSD. LPA revealed four profiles: ‘CPTSD’ (8.5%), ‘PTSD’ (14%), ‘Disturbances in Self-Organization’ (DSO; 11%), and ‘low symptoms’ (67%). Membership in the CPTSD and DSO profiles was associated with cumulative traumatisation (OR = 1.42 and OR = 1.26, respectively) and poorer health (OR = 2.84 and OR = 1.64, respectively), relative to the low symptom profile, while membership in the PTSD profile was associated with younger age (OR = 0.91). The CPTSD profile showed the greatest posttraumatic maladaptive beliefs. This study yields empirical support for the ICD-11 CPTSD model in prison staff. The results provide additional support for the validity of ITQ measurement of PTSD and CPTSD.