Submit a Manuscript to the Journal
Clinical Psychologist
For a Special Issue on
Relational and social processes in PTSD and complex PTSD
Manuscript deadline
Special Issue Editor(s)
Reuben Kindred,
Swinburne University of Technology
[email protected]
Kathleen de Boer,
Swinburne University of Technology
[email protected]
Relational and social processes in PTSD and complex PTSD
Interpersonal processes play a central role in both the development and recovery from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD (CPTSD), yet they are rarely examined as a cohesive focus within the trauma literature. Trauma-exposed individuals commonly experience attachment disruptions, relational withdrawal, interpersonal sensitivity, difficulties with intimacy, couple conflict, and parenting challenges. Social support is one of the most robust predictors of PTSD severity and recovery trajectories, while CPTSD explicitly includes disturbances in relationships as a core diagnostic domain. Together, these findings highlight the need for a clearer integration of interpersonal science with trauma research.
This special issue brings together research that examines PTSD and CPTSD through an interpersonal and relational lens, with the aim of advancing theory, assessment, and clinical understanding of how relationships shape, and are shaped by, trauma-related distress and recovery.
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to):
- Social support, loneliness, and social isolation following trauma
- Attachment processes and attachment insecurity in PTSD and CPTSD
- Dyadic, couple, and family functioning in trauma-exposed populations
- Interpersonal sensitivity, trust, intimacy, and relational withdrawal
- Parenting and intergenerational or family-based trauma processes
- Interpersonal emotion regulation and social cognition in PTSD/CPTSD
- Relational recovery processes and pathways to social reconnection
- Interpersonal dysfunction, maladaptive relational patterns, and social impairment in PTSD and CPTSD
Submission Instructions
We welcome contributions that include:
- Empirical studies, including cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental designs
- Case reports or case series illustrating interpersonal processes, relational disturbance, or recovery pathways in PTSD and CPTSD
- Clinical and intervention-focused research examining relational mechanisms or outcomes
- Assessment and measurement studies focused on interpersonal functioning in trauma
- Population-based or cohort studies examining interpersonal risk and protective factors.
- Qualitative studies exploring lived experience following trauma
- Meta-analytic studies examining social processes in PTSD and CPTSD.
- Theoretical, conceptual, and integrative review papers examining interpersonal dysfunction, relational disturbance, and social impairment in PTSD and CPTSD
By bringing together diverse perspectives and methodologies, this special issue aims to deepen understanding of interpersonal processes in PTSD and CPTSD and to inform assessment, formulation, and recovery-oriented practice. When submitting via ScholarOne, authors should select the Special Issue title to ensure their manuscript is correctly routed. Manuscripts should be prepared in accordance with Clinical Psychologist author guidelines.