Latent Patterns of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, Depression, and Posttraumatic Growth Among Adolescents During the COVID‐19 Pandemic

Zhen, Rui; Zhou, Xiao

Researchhas shown that posttraumatic reactions can co‐occur in trauma‐exposed individuals. Many studies have assessed the co‐occurring patterns of two types of reactions, but few have assessed the patterns of multiple reactions. To build on existing knowledge, the present study examined co‐occurring patterns of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, depressive symptoms, and posttraumatic growth (PTG) among adolescents during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Participants (N = 683) were adolescents selected from an area in China severely affected by COVID‐19 who completed the PTSD Checklist, a measure of depression, a PTG inventory, and a cognitive emotional regulation questionnaire. Latent profile analysis and multinomial logistic regression were used for the data analyses. The results showed three heterogeneous patterns characterized by growth (n = 248, 36.3%), distress (n = 101, 14.8%), and struggle (n = 334, 48.9%). Positive refocusing and reappraisal were associated with membership in the growth group compared with distress group, OR = 0.83, 95% CI [0.75, 0.93] and OR = 0.78, 95% CI [0.68, 0.90], whereas rumination, catastrophizing, and “putting into perspective” were associated with membership in the distress group compared with growth group, ORs = 1.15–1.44. These findings suggest that posttraumatic reactions show heterogeneous characteristics: struggle, rather than growth or distress, is common among adolescents during COVID‐19; and distinct cognitive emotional regulation strategies have distinguishing roles in the three patterns of posttraumatic reactions.