Dissociation and psychopathology in Kenyan survivors of a terrorist bombing

BACKGROUND: Dissociation is a serious psychological condition that is characterized as a pathological outcome of trauma-related experience. Thus, dissociation could be expected to develop in survivors of disaster trauma and to be associated with trauma exposure and psychopathology. METHODS: A sample of 278 disaster-affected Kenyans was assessed 8 to 10 months after the 1998 terrorist bombing of the US Embassy in Nairobi for a study of trauma-related psychopathology and dissociation in the context of personality and culture. Instruments of assessment were the Diagnostic Interview Schedule, the Dissociative Experiences Scale, and the Temperament and Character Inventory. RESULTS: Dissociation appeared to represent a largely nonpathological response to the disaster experience that reflected personality variables and a cultural context. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that dissociation encountered in disaster-exposed groups in this cultural setting does not necessarily repre-sent psychopathology, but attention to dissociative responses might help clinicians identify and provide interventions for individuals experiencing distressing intrusive and hyperarousal symptoms.