The role of repetitive thinking and spirituality in the development of posttraumatic growth and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder

Abstract

Both posttraumatic growth (PTG) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are associated with spirituality and different kinds of repetitive thinking, such as deliberate rumination (DR) and intrusive rumination (IR) respectively. This study aimed to examine if spirituality modifies the relationship between types of rumination and trauma outcomes. Method: Ninety-six students from the University of Liverpool completed an online survey of four questionnaires: The Posttraumatic stress Diagnostic Scale, the Event Related Rumination Inventory, the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory-Short form and the Expressions of Spirituality Inventory- Revised. Results: Correlations revealed that spirituality was related to DR and PTG, but not to IR or PTSD symptoms. Moderation analysis showed that spirituality significantly moderated the relationship between PTG and DR, but not the relationship between PTSD and IR. Conclusions: The findings suggest that although spirituality has no relationship with negative outcomes of trauma, it may help individuals to ruminate in a constructive manner in order to develop positive outcomes. Keywords: trauma, posttraumatic growth, posttraumatic stress disorder, rumination, cognitive processes, spirituality.