Cognitive processing of psychological trauma: the role of disclosure in post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms

The mechanisms by which disclosure about stressful traumatic events relates to cognitive processing of psychological trauma have attracted a great deal of interest among researchers and therapists. The main question in this study involves the effects of disclosure, whether talking about the psychological trauma in nonclinical settings may affect the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. Furthermore, it focuses on the relationship between this disorder and cognitive processing. Quantitative methodology was employed for the realization of this study, with a sample of 150 police officers. Police officers exposed to criminal events reported higher symptoms. The results showed that the higher the urge to talk about the trauma, the lower the post-traumatic stress disorder they experienced, and adapted cognitive processing reduced the severity of this disorder. Women have a higher incentive to talk about trauma. The findings and conclusions of this scientific research can serve as a basis for understanding the role of disclosure about stressful or traumatic events in cognitive processing and the clinical work of psychologists for the psychological care of police employees.