MALIGNANT MEMORIES - EFFECT OF A SHOOTING IN THE WORKPLACE ON SCHOOL PERSONNELS ATTITUDES

Because attitudes signify how an individual organizes and integrates p erceptions of self and social context, effects of a man-made disaster in the workplace on attitudes toward self, family, workplace, communit y, and social issues were surveyed in school personnel 6 and 18 months after a shooting and intervention to extend understanding of human re sponse to stress. Results showed the attitudes were more positive than negative in this study group. Additionally, specific attitudes were a ssociated with specific preexisting personality and familial variables , as well as posttraumatic and associated symptoms. Positive attitudes toward the self were associated with fewer maladaptive personality an d family characteristics. Positive attitudes toward family correlated with fewer maladaptive personality features and fewer posttraumatic sy mptoms. Positive attitudes toward community and workplace, especially coworkers, were associated with fewer posttraumatic stress disorder (P TSD) and associated symptoms. Generally, the findings suggest that a v ariety of attitudes and their evolution in the wake of a disaster, som e of which maybe quite specific to the event, are associated with post traumatic morbidity, subject variables, and with other attitudes. The authors discuss implications of these findings within the biopsychosoc ial framework of malignant memories.