Herckleperckle
Member
11-20-2003
| Sunday, November 19, 2006 - 2:38 pm
Source: Ivanhoe.com Reported November 8, 2006 Higher IQ Protects Against Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Brainpower may play a role in warding off a debilitating condition often suffered by people who live through a traumatic event. In a new study, researchers from Michigan State University in East Lansing report people who score higher on IQ tests when they are young are significantly less likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following an act of violence, life-threatening illness, natural disaster, or other anxiety-provoking experience. The finding held true even for people who grew up in poorer neighborhoods or had anxiety disorders. "The ways in which high IQ might protect from the PTSD effects of traumatic exposure are unclear," write the authors. "The findings underscore the importance of investigating cognitive processes in a person's responses to challenging and potentially traumatic experiences and the involvement of general intelligence in shaping them." The study was conducted among about 700 children born in Michigan between 1983 and 1985 who underwent IQ testing at age 6 and then filled out a questionnaire on traumatic events and their reaction to them at age 17. About 75 percent of the group reported at least one traumatic event, and about 6 percent met the criteria for PTSD. Children with IQs of more than 115 were less likely to develop PTSD in response to a traumatic event. Those children were also less likely to have been exposed to such an event. SOURCE: Archives of General Psychiatry, 2006;63:1238-1245
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