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TRAJECTORIES OF DISSOCIATIVE EXPERIENCES IN ADOLESCENT FEMALES EXPOSED TO CHILD MALTREATMENT: INFLUENCE OF FRONTAL EEG ASYMMETRY

Published Online:December 2020https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2020.39.9.824

Abstract

Introduction: Dissociative experiences resulting in disruptions in the integration of an organized sense of self are one consequence of childhood maltreatment, and is associated with psychopathology and maladjustment across development. Despite the consequences of dissociative experiences, we know relatively little about the physiological factors associated with the development of dissociative experiences in children exposed to maltreatment.

Methods: Using a 3-wave short-term prospective design, we examined the influence of resting frontal alpha asymmetry at rest on the trajectory of dissociative experiences in a sample of adolescents exposed to documented child maltreatment (N = 55; Mage = 15.93, SDage = 1.02).

Results: Adolescents with greater relative left frontal alpha asymmetry at rest exhibited increasing trajectories of dissociative experiences over one year.

Discussion: Our results are discussed in the context physiological indexes of emotion dysregulation associated with dissociative experiences in youth exposed to child maltreatment.

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