- Title
- Recovery from post-earthquake psychological morbidity: who suffers and who recovers?
- Creator
- Lewin, Terry J.; Carr, Vaughan J.; Webster, Rosemary A.
- Relation
- Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry Vol. 32, Issue 1, p. 15-20
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/00048679809062701
- Publisher
- Taylor & Francis Ltd.
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 1998
- Description
- OBJECTIVE: We sought to identify the psychosocial characteristics of high earthquake exposure subjects that were associated with the development of post-disaster morbidity and with recovery. METHOD: Data reported are from 515 participants in a longitudinal study of the psychosocial effects of the 1989 Newcastle (Australia) earthquake. Subjects were allocated to three subgroups (low morbidity; recovered; and persistent morbidity) on the basis of their Impact of Event Scale scores across the four phases of the study. Differences between these subgroups were examined on a broad range of variables. RESULTS: Several background, dispositional, coping style and exposure-related factors characterised those who developed psychological morbidity, only a small subset of which differentiated between those who recovered and those with persistent morbidity. CONCLUSIONS: Post-earthquake morbidity persists longer in those who are older, have a history of emotional problems, have higher neuroticism, use more neurotic defenses, and report higher levels of post-disaster life events.
- Subject
- exposure factors; Newcastle earthquake; psychological morbidity; recovery; sociodemographic characteristics; vulnerability factors
- Identifier
- uon:2794
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/31736
- Identifier
- ISSN:0004-8674
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