Is Absorption a Diathesis for Dissociation in Sexually and Physically Abused Patients?

Abstract

In a sample of 251 psychiatric outpatients, either a dissociative disorder or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was present in 47 percent of the sixty-four patients with abuse histories and above-median Absorption scores. In contrast, a dissociative disorder or PTSD was present in only 21 percent of the fifty-six patients with abuse histories and below-median Absorption scores, in only 5 percent of the fifty-six patients with no abuse and above-median Absorption, and in only 1 percent of the seventy-five patients with no abuse and below-median Absorption. The current evidence, in conjunction with past evidence for 50 percent heritability of Absorption, raises the possibility that Absorption is a diathesis for dissociative responses to traumatic stress.