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Chapter 4: A Social–Cognitive–Neuroscience Approach to PTSD: Clinical and Research Perspectives

DOI:

10.1891/9780826106322.0004

Authors

  • Ruth, Lanius
  • Paul, Frewen
  • Anthony, Nazarov
  • Margaret, C. McKinnon

Abstract

This chapter reviews the disturbances in self-referential processing and social cognition in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to early-life trauma. It talks about the neural underpinnings of self-referential processing and examines how they may relate the integrity of the default mode network (DMN). The chapter describes the deficits in social cognition, with a particular focus on theory of mind in PTSD and the neural circuitry underlying direct versus avert eye contact. It then addresses the implications for assessment and treatment. Johnson demonstrated that self-referential processing is associated with the activation of cortical midline structures and therefore overlaps with key areas of the DMN in healthy individuals. Healthy individuals exhibited faster responses to the self-relevance of personal characteristics than to the accuracy of general facts. Less activation of the medial prefrontal cortex (PFC) was observed for the contrast of self-relevance of personal characteristics relative to general facts as compared to controls.