Academic burnout and posttraumatic growth predict trajectories of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms of adolescents following Yancheng tornado in China

Heterogeneity in adaptation outcomes among adolescents following major disasters needs further elaboration. Both ongoing stressors and positive psychological changes should be concerned in evaluating the heterogeneity. This study examined the prospective trajectories of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among adolescent survivors following the Yancheng Tornado in China and the associations of academic burnout and posttraumatic growth (PTG) with the differential trajectories. A total of 246 adolescent survivors were recruited and administered psychometric instruments at 6, 9, 12, and 18 months after the tornado. In the conditional model with predictor variables gender, school grade, academic burnout, PTG, subjective fear, and property loss, three trajectories of PTSD symptoms emerged: recovery (43.5%), recurrent dysfunction (37.0%), and delayed dysfunction (19.5%). The results indicated the importance of considering academic-related experiences together with disaster-related experiences in evaluating the prospective adjustment among adolescents following major disasters. Our findings point to feasible directions for both clinical and school-based interventions for addressing poorer adjustment among adolescents after major disasters. Copyright © 2022 American Psychological Association.