A history of PTSD changes the way people express themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background: The words people use in everyday life tell us about their emotions, their mental state and allow us to understand how people process and interpret an event. Previous research has established a link between the content analysis of narrative texts and the psychopathology of people who have experienced trauma. Objectives: This study examines whether the development of PTSD following exposure to a previous traumatic event alters the way people express themselves in the context of an anxiety-provoking event, the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This study is based on semi-structured interviews conducted during the first lockdown period in France (23 April–16 May 2020) with people exposed to the 13 November 2015 attacks (N = 31) and nonexposed people (N = 57). Results: People with PTSD had longer narratives and used more first-person singular pronouns, lower first-person plural pronouns, more words related to negative emotions and anxiety compared to the nonexposed group. Within the PTSD group, there was no significant difference between the use of words related to the attacks and the pandemic. Conversely, the nonexposed group used more words related to the COVID-19 pandemic compared to words related to the attacks. Conclusion: These results confirm, as have other studies, that a history of PTSD can specifically modify the style and narrative of past experiences. They underline the importance of including linguistic analyses in psychological assessments of PTSD.