OBJECTIVE Reconsolidation therapy (RT)-Brunet method-has shown promising efficacy in reducing posttraumatic symptoms in adults with posttraumatic stress disorder. Yet its use among forcibly displaced individuals, who frequently present with complex trauma, chronic insecurity, and substantial contextual barriers, remains understudied. Exploring RT in this context represents a promising avenue for improving access to brief and structured trauma therapies in global mental health. This study examined how RT was implemented among exiled individuals receiving routine care in a health care center in France and assessed its impact on traumatic symptoms. Additional aims included exploring symptom trajectories and identifying key patient- and clinician-related factors influencing treatment delivery and outcomes. METHOD We conducted a retrospective mixed methods exploratory study using clinical data from exiled adults treated with RT. Quantitative analyses examined changes in trauma-related symptoms across sessions. Qualitative analyses explored clinician's observations, perceived barriers, and contextual adaptations used to facilitate treatment delivery. RESULTS Patients showed overall reductions in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, although trajectories varied according to individual circumstances, trauma complexity, and contextual stressors. Clinician reported frequent real-world adaptations, including original mismatch strategies, adjustments to session structure, and linguistic accommodation within the French clinical context. Several factors, such as administrative instability, chronic stress exposure, and comorbid symptoms, appeared to shape engagement and outcomes. CONCLUSIONS RT can be feasibly delivered to exiled individuals, even when they face unstable living conditions and multiple past traumatic experiences. These findings offer preliminary insights into mechanisms of engagement and response within this population and provide guidance for refining procedures and measurement strategies in future research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE Research on moral injury (MI) continues to grow despite a lack of consensus definition, and qualitative, exploratory studies can enable further construct clarification. This study sought to understand how post-9/11 veterans perceive MI and how these perceptions impact their responses to existing measures of MI. METHOD Twelve veterans completed a cognitive interview utilizing the Moral Injury Questionnaire-Military Version and the Expressions of Moral Injury Scale-Military Version. Using thematic analysis, qualitative data were coded and analyzed for their connection or divergence to existing theoretical frameworks of MI. RESULTS Veterans' narratives focused on themes of institutional betrayal, collective betrayal, and discharge as a betrayal-based potentially morally injurious experience. Some veterans did not perceive experiences to be morally injurious if they happened outside of combat. Other veterans perceived the construct as too narrow in scope to account for what they considered morally injurious. CONCLUSION Further construct clarification is needed to determine betrayal's role in MI. Definitions and conceptualizations of MI may need to expand to be inclusive of experiences of betrayal that do not come from high-stakes situations or explicitly distinguish MI from other constructs such as institutional betrayal. Veterans' perceptions that MI is primarily based in combat experiences has significant implications for adequately capturing and assessing MI. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE The International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ) was developed to assess International Classification of Diseases-11th Revision posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD. Although extensively validated in adults across diverse contexts, evidence for the child and adolescent version (ITQ-CA) is still limited. Few studies have examined its latent structure or validity in youth, and none have validated it in Portuguese adolescents. Moreover, measurement invariance across sex has not yet been established in this age group, despite documented sex differences in trauma exposure and symptom expression. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the ITQ-CA in Portuguese adolescents by testing factorial structure, internal consistency, convergent and discriminant validity, and measurement invariance across sex. METHOD A school-based sample of 530 adolescents (11-16 years) completed the ITQ-CA and measures of trauma exposure, PTSD symptoms, emotion dysregulation, and resilience. Confirmatory factor analyses compared four latent structures and tested measurement invariance across sex (configural, metric, scalar). Convergent and discriminant validity were assessed using average variance extracted and composite reliability and Pearson correlations. RESULTS The correlated six-factor model showed the best fit. Full configural, metric, and scalar invariance supported cross-sex comparability. Convergent validity was adequate, and discriminant validity was supported by the Fornell-Larcker criterion and external patterns, with disturbances in self-organization factors showing stronger associations with dysregulation and resilience than PTSD factors. Internal consistency was acceptable to good. CONCLUSIONS The ITQ-CA is a reliable, valid, and sex-invariant measure of International Classification of Diseases-11th Revision PTSD and disturbances in self-organization in Portuguese adolescents, with practical utility for research and rapid screening in schools and community services. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
