Awards for and Presentations by members of the Freyd Dynamics Lab at the

2007 Annual Meeting of the
American Psychological Association

Awards APA 2007

Carolyn Allard, 2007
American Psychological Association, Division (56) of Trauma Psychology
Outstanding Dissertation Award
Presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007

Award presented by TERENCE M. KEANE, PH.D.
Associate Chief of Staff for Research & Development
VA Boston Healthcare System

Annmarie Cholankeril, 2007
American Psychological Association Convention poster selected for "Psychological Science Superstars: Datablitz!"
APA Science Student Council and the APA Board of Scientific Affairs

Posters, & Presentations APA 2007

Barlow, M.R., Cromer, L.D.., Caron, H., & Freyd, J.J (August, 2007) Dissociation and Attachment to Companion Animals. Poster presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

Cholankeril, A., Freyd, J.J., Becker-Blease, K.A., Pears, K.C., Kim, H.K., Fisher, P.A. (August 2007). Dissociation and post-traumatic symptoms in maltreated preschool children. Poster presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

Foynes, M.M., Murakami, J. M., Hall, G. C. N., & Freyd, J. J. (August, 2007) Trauma, Ethnicity and Psychopathology. Poster presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

Klest, B., Freyd, J.J., Goldberg, L, &. Hampson, S. (August, 2007) Trauma, Personality, and Resilience Against Depression: A Longitudinal Analysis. Poster presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

McLean, C., Klest, B., & Freyd, J.J. (August, 2007) Dissociation and Cognitive Distortion: Functional and Effective Similarities. Poster presented at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

Freyd, J.J. (August, 2007) Symposium discussant for "Ethics and Trauma Research: Conceptual and Empirical Considerations," at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, California, August 17-20, 2007.

MORE DETAILS, ABSTRACTS, HANDOUTS

	AWARD Carolyn Allard Outstanding Dissertation Award, 2007, Division 56 of APA Allard Dissertation: The Role of Betrayal and Culture on Trauma Sequelae in a Japanese Sample/ by Carolyn Allard, University of Oregon, 2007 Abstract Full Text
	POSTER Barlow, M.R., Cromer, L.D.., Caron, H., & Freyd, J.J Dissociation and Attachment to Companion Animals. Full Poster: Research has made a connection between dissociation and attachment to pets (Brown & Katcher, 2001). We examined attachment to pets and stuffed animals. Seventy-two university students were divided into low and high dissociators. Eleven women with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) also participated. Low and high dissociators were not statistically different on pet attachment. However, DID participants were more attached to pets than were either low or high dissociators. Within the student sample, high dissociators were more attached to stuffed animals than were low dissociators. DID participants were also more attached to stuffed animals than were low dissociators, but were not statistically different from high dissociators. This research may open the door for replicating clinical pet-intervention studies with stuffed animal interventions.
	POSTER & AWARD Cholankeril, A., Freyd, J.J., Becker-Blease, K.A., Pears, K.C., Kim, H.K., Fisher, P.A. Dissociation and post-traumatic symptoms in maltreated preschool children This Poster Selected by APA for the "Psychological Science Superstars: Datablitz!" Award Full Poster: This study examines dissociation and post-traumatic arousal/intrusion symptomatology in a population of preschool-age foster children with documented cases of maltreatment. Analyses compared Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) subscale scores for the foster care sample and a community sample with no known maltreatment history. We also examined differences between maltreatment subtypes. The results suggest that exposure to any type of maltreatment is associated with greater dissociation and post-traumatic symptomatology. There also appears to be a distinct difference between the experiences of sexual abuse versus physical abuse. Preschool-age children who had been sexually abused displayed high levels of post-traumatic symptoms, while children who had been physically abused tended to use dissociation as a primary coping mechanism.
	POSTER Foynes, M.M., Murakami, J. M., Hall, G. C. N., & Freyd, J. J. Trauma, Ethnicity and Psychopathology. Full Poster: According to Freyd’s Betrayal Trauma Theory (BTT) (Freyd, 1996), betrayal traumas (BTs) are those perpetrated by someone whom the survivor cares for, depends on, or trusts. Prior research suggests traumatic disclosure is influenced by level of betrayal. For instance, a study conducted with a European American sample indicated that high BTs were associated with a greater likelihood of first disclosure years following abuse, if disclosure ever occurred (Foynes, Freyd, Deprince, under review). Using the BTT framework, an online study was conducted with Asian Americans and European Americans (N=301) to examine the relationship between BT and nondisclosure. Results suggest that Asian Values significantly predict nondisclosure of high, but not low, betrayal traumas. By examining the impact of cultural values on this relationship, we hope to contribute to the creation of culturally sensitive trauma interventions.
	POSTER Klest, B., Freyd, J.J., Goldberg, L, &. Hampson, S. Trauma, Personality, and Resilience Against Depression: A Longitudinal Analysis. Full Poster: Past research indicates that traumatic events in early life predict depression in adulthood (e.g., Chapman et al., 2004). It has also been demonstrated that certain personality characteristics contribute to resilience in the face of traumatic events (e.g. Bonnano, 2005, Maddi, 1999). However, previous methods have mostly measured personality and resilience concurrently, leading to possible confounds and reporting bias. The current analysis used longitudinal data to determine whether pre-existing personality characteristics buffer the depressogenic effects of experiencing trauma. Six-hundred seventy-nine ethnically diverse participants were assessed for big-five personality characteristics in childhood, and were later assessed in adulthood for traumatic experiences and symptoms of depression. Results suggest that childhood conscientiousness is negatively associated with experiencing traumatic events in adolescence and adulthood, and that experiencing trauma is positively associated with depression. However, personality traits do not seem to predict resilience against depression in the face of traumatic events. Implications for prevention and intervention are discussed.
	POSTER McLean, C., Klest, B., & Freyd, J.J. Dissociation and Cognitive Distortion: Functional and Effective Similarities. Full Poster: In the wake of traumatic events, people must find ways to cope with the distress they experience. Different types of traumas produce different types of distress (e.g., disruption of attachment relationships vs. fear of death), and thus different coping mechanisms may be appropriate in each situation. Two common coping strategies are dissociation and cognitive distortions. This study examines relationships between dissociation, cognitive distortions, and characteristics of traumatic events experienced by participants, such as age at the time of trauma and whether the trauma was perpetrated by a someone close to the victim. Survey data from 295 participants indicated that dissociation was a common reaction to trauma for all types of events at all ages. Inconsistent with previous findings, dissociation was more common among those experiencing low betrayal traumas and trauma at older ages, suggesting that this sample may not be a representative sample. However, cognitive distortions were not so common among people who experienced trauma before age 6, and were more common among people experiencing non-interpersonal traumas and traumas low in betrayal than among people experiencing traumas perpetrated by people close to them. Future studies should attempt to replicate these findings with more representative samples. Implications for research and treatment are discussed.
	SYMPOSIUM DISCUSSANT Freyd, J.J. Symposium discussant for "Ethics and Trauma Research: Conceptual and Empirical Considerations,"