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The role of environmental sensitivity in post-traumatic stress symptoms in Lebanese children and adolescents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 January 2024

Elie G. Karam Open the ORCID record for Elie G. Karam [Opens in a new window] ,
John Fayyad ,
Yuanyuan Huang ,
Dahlia Saab ,
Josleen Al Barathie Open the ORCID record for Josleen Al Barathie [Opens in a new window]  and
Michael Pluess Open the ORCID record for Michael Pluess [Opens in a new window]
Elie G. Karam*
Affiliation:
Institute for Development, Research, Advocacy and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, University of Balamand Faculty of Medicine, Beirut, Lebanon Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, St George Hospital University Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon
John Fayyad
Affiliation:
Institute for Development, Research, Advocacy and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, University of Balamand Faculty of Medicine, Beirut, Lebanon Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, St George Hospital University Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon
Yuanyuan Huang
Affiliation:
Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London, UK
Dahlia Saab
Affiliation:
Institute for Development, Research, Advocacy and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon
Josleen Al Barathie
Affiliation:
Institute for Development, Research, Advocacy and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon
Michael Pluess
Affiliation:
Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London, UK
*
Corresponding author: Elie G. Karam; Email: egkaram@idraac.org
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Abstract

Children differ substantially in their sensitivity to the quality of their environment. Some are more sensitive and more likely to develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in response to Childhood Adversities (CAs), but might also benefit more from Positive Home Experiences (PHE). The aim of this study is to investigate the role of Environmental Sensitivity (ES), CAs and PHEs in PTSD development in children and adolescents. Data was collected from N = 2,569 children/adolescents. PTSD symptoms, CAs, PHEs and ES were assessed with self-report measures. We found that higher ES and CAs emerged as risk factors for PTSD development whereas higher levels of PHEs protected against PTSD. ES moderated the effects of CAs (β = 1.08, p < .001) on PTSD symptoms in the total sample. This moderating effect was more pronounced in girls, suggesting that highly sensitive girls with high childhood adversities were more likely to have higher PTSD symptoms than girls with low levels of sensitivity (β = 1.09, p < .001). In conclusion, Environmental Sensitivity played an important role as a risk factor for PTSD and as a moderating factor that accentuated the main effects of childhood adversities, particularly in girls.

Keywords

childhood adversitiesenvironmental sensitivitypositive home experiencesPTSDtrauma
Type
Regular Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 37 , Issue 1 , February 2025 , pp. 251 - 258
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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Footnotes

†

Deceased.

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