Constance Dalenberg

California School of Professional Psychology · PhD Clinical

Objective: Traumatic experiences cause considerable suffering and place a burden on society due to lost productivity, increases in suicidality, violence, criminal behavior, and psychological disorder. The impact of traumatic experiences is complicated because many factors affect individuals' responses. By employing several methodological improveme...

Information Deprivation Trauma (IDT; Schild & Dalenberg, 2012b) is a concept that has not been adequately addressed in the trauma literature. IDT is a concept requiring a negative emotional response (e.g., fear, helplessness, horror) consequent to (a) a lack of understanding of the extent/magnitude/consequences/probability of a current or impending...

Objectives: Ambulatory assessment data collection methods are increasingly used to study behavior, experiences, and patient-reported outcomes (PROs), such as emotions, cognitions, and symptoms in clinical samples. Data collected close in time at frequent and fixed intervals can assess PROs that are discrete or changing rapidly and provide informat...

The second paper will elaborate on the second of the two themes from the San Diego Countertransference study, which comments on perception of therapist intensity when the issue of race was raised. Of the 50 ethnic minority participants, only 28% reported that their therapist handled the issue of race well. Sixty percent rated their therapist below...

In courtrooms across the United States, malingering measures are utilized in order to evaluate whether defendants are consciously altering or exaggerating their symptom presentation for secondary gain. It is common practice in many states for opposing counsel to request and procure a list of malingering tests that will be utilized in the evaluation...

The Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM) was developed by Tom N. Tombaugh in 1996 as a quick test to assess malingered memory impairment. The TOMM is a visual memory recognition test that takes approximately 15-20 minutes to administer which distinguished true memory impairment from malingered memories. The TOMM is not influenced by true neurological...

The Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM) was developed by Tom N. Tombaugh in 1996 as a quick test to assess malingered memory impairment. The TOMM is a visual memory recognition test that takes approximately 15-20 minutes to administer which distinguished true memory impairment from malingered memories. The TOMM is not influenced by true neurological...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the consequences of sexual and physical trauma among a sample of deaf adults. Thirty-two men and 45 women completed the Life Event Checklist (LEC), the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), the Trauma Symptom Inventory (TSI), the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire-20 (SDQ-20) and a sociodemographic q...

This chapter explores religious or spiritual beliefs as a central part of the clinical picture, how therapists can discuss such beliefs with clients, and related interventions in the context of the treatment of trauma. Our exploration of the clinical literature shows that after trauma, clients often attempt to use their spiritual or religious knowl...

The US Census Bureau and many private surveys have projected that racial and ethnic minorities will soon represent a numerical majority of the United States. In an effort to address concerns for cultural competence in mental health services, psychotherapists are encouraged to develop awareness for racial issues affecting the life experiences of eth...

Measuring and Defining Child Physical Abuse Abstract Problem Statement. While child physical abuse (CPA) appears to be at least twice as prevalent as child sexual abuse (CSA) in the United States, the research on physical abuse relative to sexual abuse is much more scarce. The present research was an attempt to identify if a consensus has develop...

The prevention of child sexual abuse at its source necessitates investigation of the motivations of child molesters to offend. In addition to sexual arousal to children, child molesters may be motivated by a desire to increase self-esteem, gain a sense of power and control, and decrease feelings of loneliness. Few studies have investigated the effe...

Research on therapy outcome routinely finds that common factors (e.g., warmth, genuineness, trustworthiness) account for more variance than does therapy technique. This article makes the case for more attention to training in positive common factor variables within graduate schools and internships and for research on the effectiveness of such train...

This article is a discussion of the articles by Nicole Taus Kluemper, Erna Olafson, Frank Putnam, Laura Brown, Ross Cheit, and Gerald Koocher. The papers center on the issues raised by a decision by two psychologists to break the confidentiality of a case study published by David Corwin and Erna Olafson to gather information to support an alternati...

We respond to Lynn et al.'s (2014) comments on our review (Dalenberg et al., 2012) demonstrating the superiority of the trauma model (TM) over the fantasy model (FM) in explaining the trauma-dissociation relationship. Lynn et al. conceded that our meta-analytic results support the TM hypothesis that trauma exposure is a causal risk factor for the d...

Abstract Psychologists have long assumed a connection between traumatic experience and psychological dissociation. This hypothesis is referred to as the Trauma Model of dissociation. In the last decade, a series of papers have been published that question this traditional causal link, proposing an alternative Fantasy Model of dissociation. In this...

Aspects of the stressor criterion for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been controversial since its inception, and the theoretical or empirical reasons for decisions about it have not been clear. To investigate whether sudden events involving severe emotional loss have the potential to precipitate PTSD, we assessed exposure to Criterion A...

This article describes the initial validation of the Structured Interview for Self-Destructive Behaviors (SI-SDB), a brief interview assessing suicidality, self-injury, substance abuse, disordered eating, and risky sexual behaviors. Self-destructive behaviors present clinical and practical challenges for mental health treatment providers. Participa...

Reports an error in "Dissociation in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Part II: How Theoretical Models Fit the Empirical Evidence and Recommendations for Modifying the Diagnostic Criteria for PTSD" by Constance Dalenberg and Eve B. Carlson (Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, Advanced Online Publication, May 14, 2012, np). The...

The author discusses countertransference in response to patient shame and self-blame in psychotherapy with the traumatized client. Clinical vignettes are presented to illustrate countertransference responses. Issues of self-blame and other-blame are explored. Examining and highlighting situational causes for shame, differentiating accusatory shame...

This book offers empirically based guidance for the practitioner who is attempting to manage countertransference reactions to trauma and for the researcher who wishes to conduct more sophisticated and clinically valid investigations of countertransference. The author weaves together data from anecdotal reports from her own work, transcript studies...

[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 4(5) of Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy (see record 2012-25276-001). There was an error in the section, “Question 6: Does the Presence of High Dissociation Raise the Probability of the Presence of PTSD Symptoms at High Levels of Severity?” The paragra...

Reports an error in "Dissociation in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Part I: Definitions and Review of Research" by Eve B. Carlson, Constance Dalenberg and Elizabeth McDade-Montez (Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, Advanced Online Publication, Apr 30, 2012, np). There was an error in the section, “Question 6: Does the Pres...

A number of researchers have argued for the existence of different subtypes of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In the current paper we present criteria by which to assess these putative subtypes, clarify potential pitfalls of the statistical methods employed to determine them, and propose alternative methods for such determinations. Specifica...

The purpose of this article is to examine how closely six theoretical models fit the empirical evidence reviewed in Part 1 on the relationship between trauma and dissociation and to apply the resulting conclusions to make recommendations about diagnostic criteria for PTSD. We describe six models for the relationships among traumatic stress, dissoci...

Both deafness and dissociation disconnect people from certain aspects of the external environment. Dissociation among the deaf population has been largely neglected as an area of scientific investigation. The purpose of this study was twofold: first, to examine the psychometrics of 2 dissociation measures--the Dissociation scale of the Trauma Sympt...

The relationship between a reported history of trauma and dissociative symptoms has been explained in 2 conflicting ways. Pathological dissociation has been conceptualized as a response to antecedent traumatic stress and/or severe psychological adversity. Others have proposed that dissociation makes individuals prone to fantasy, thereby engendering...

While existing research suggests vulnerability of the deaf community to trauma, very little data exists on prevalence, symptom manifestation, and/or unique characteristics of the response of deaf adults and children to traumatic events. In this research, 79 deaf adults were interviewed with the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale, the Life Event Chec...

Although information about individuals' exposure to highly stressful events such as traumatic stressors is often very useful for clinicians and researchers, available measures are too long and complex for use in many settings. The Trauma History Screen (THS) was developed to provide a very brief and easy-to-complete self-report measure of exposure...

Anecdotal examples of recovered memory have been described by many experimental memory experts, including those who would later emerge as dismissive of the concept. Anecdotes offer examples of individuals who recovered provably accurate memories outside of therapy in the absence of suggestion, and who describe vague memories that become clearer ove...

This chapter explains why the loss and recovery of trauma memory is considered to be controversial. It also explores the historical themes that maintain or exacerbate the controversy. Consensus papers have appeared in scientific journals, at times written jointly by clinical researchers and non-clinical cognitive researchers. The chapter emphasizes...

The multivictim case presents special difficulties for the child protection system, including enhanced probability of multiple interviews and potential contamination of children's narratives by a variety of sources. Further, multivictim cases have been empirically shown to be more likely to involve severely abused children, fantastic claims, and ot...

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Research during the past two decades has firmly established the reliability of the phenomenon of recovered memory. This review first highlights the strongest evidence for the phenomenon itself and discusses the survey, experimental, and biological evidence for the varying mechanisms that may underlie the phenomenon. Routes to traumatic amnesia from...

The authors believe that the forensic evaluation of DID and the dissociative disorders requires expertise in the assessment and treatment of those disorders and that it requires an integration of data gathered from biologic psychologic, and social domains.

Prior research has shown that anger is a prominent feature in the psychopathology of trauma survivors. This hostile reactivity can be difficult for clinicians, who must balance instruction or interpretation designed to teach clients appropriate ways to handle anger and judicious withholding of response to maintain the therapeutic alliance for other...

The research was conducted to determine the relationship between violent trauma, child abuse history, and dissociative symptoms in a Russian population. Three hundred and one undergraduate students from Moscow State Linguistics University participated in the study and completed the Dissociation Continuum Scale, the Violence History Questionnaire, t...

It has been argued that there are basic and unavoidable incompatibilities between the science and the profession of psychology. This article challenges this claim, and explains why it is important for trauma therapists to reject this distinction. Misleading descriptions of “science,” together with pejorative and simplistic descriptions of complex c...

Based on a conceptual framework for the long-term effects of childhood abuse, this study examined the capacity of childhood family environment (caretaker dysfunction, neglect, perceived social support), violent abuse (physical and sexual), and individual variables (other abuse) to predict adult psychiatric symptoms of PTSD, dissociation, and depres...

This conceptual framework for the effects of traumatic experiences addresses what makes an experience traumatic, what psychological responses are expected follow- ing such events, and why symptoms persist after the traumatic experience is over. Three elements are considered necessary for an event to be traumatizing: The event must be experienced as...

The authors present a set of diagnostic procedures designed to detect subtle presentations of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Defined as a Type II diagnostic error (a false negative), the authors examine several sources of subtle presentations of PTSD. These include imperfect diagnostic instruments, high base rates, imperfect memory of criti...

The tendency for children to keep the secret of child abuse is an important practical impediment to adequate research, prevention, assessment, and treatment. While some studies have established that children will readily keep adult secrets, few have investigated the predictors of ease of disclosure. In this research, race of the interviewer request...

The issue of recovered memories of child abuse has emerged as a lightning rod for rhetoric in the last decade. Clinicians who took these memories seriously in most recent years, sometimes with caution and compassion, at other times with a singleminded bias toward acceptance, were labeled “recovered memory therapists” (Ofshe & Watters, 1994; Wakefie...

This book presents lectures, papers, legal panel discussions, and working group reports from the NATO Advanced Study Institute's conference on recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse. Most of the 95 participants were psychologists (including practitioners and clinical, cognitive, and neuroscience researchers), but the group also included anthr...

Seventeen patients who had recovered memories of abuse in therapy participated in a search for evidence confirming or refuting these memories. Memories of abuse were found to be equally accurate whether recovered or continuously remembered. Predictors of number of memory units for which evidence was uncovered included several measures of memory and...

Undergraduate and first-year graduate students (n = 410) were assessed for adult attachment, history of exposure to violence in childhood, and frequency of four types of dissociative experiences. Violence history was related to attachment style, as were four factors extracted from two dissociation measures. Each attachment style was predictedby dis...

Originally published in Contemporary Psychology: APA Review of Books , 1995, Vol 40(6), 549-550. Review of "Bridging the Silence: Nonverbal Modalities in the Treatment of Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse" (see record 1994-97791-000 ). This book is an interesting mix of case studies, research examples, and technique descriptions that focus...

Theoreticians long have argued for the centrality of strength or poverty of self-definitions in the prediction and understanding of psychopathology. In this research an empirical measure of strength of self-definition was developed based on the work of Hazel Markus. Consistency of self-description and resistance to challenge for this self-descripti...

Explores the assignment of meaning to traumatic events, especially as victims struggle to maintain or recreate a sense of meaningfulness and basic safety. It is argued that other-blame is presented often in victim self-blame literature as the preferable attributional outcome for abuse victims, while the empirical evidence supports the existence of...

The current study examined the relationship between physical abuse, dissociation, bulimic symptomatology, and impulse dysregulation. Subjects were 126 female and 57 male undergraduate and graduate psychology students. Child physical abuse, as measured by the Violence History Questionnaire, was reported by 32% of the sample, The results of this stud...

Research examining young children's causal attributions is equivocal yielding results that place the field at theoretical, clinical, and empirical crossroads. The aims of the following review are a presentation of the relevant literature in the area, an underscoring of salient dilemmas and the subsequent clarification of issues for practitioners an...

Investigated the causal explanations children use to account for common experiences. In the study, 60 preschoolers watched videotaped puppet shows designed to elicit causal attributions. Most children predominantly used internal, unstable, and specific attributions. (CB)

Examined young children's use of the presence or absence of extrinsic reward to make inferences about the intrinsic motivation of another person. Previous research indicates that most kindergartners do not use a discounting heuristic, but it was hypothesized that these children may have misinterpreted the questions asked. 19 boys and 19 girls from...