Psychosocial adjustment after sustaining traumatic brain injury: what are the important variables?

Abstract

Objective: There is an increasing appreciation by clinicans and researchers that psychosocial adjustment and recovery after sustaining traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a multi-factorial process. The aim of the present study was to investigate if premorbid psychosocial functioning and cognitive status post-TBI are linked to long term psychosocial functioning.

Methods: 12 patients who had sustained TBI at an average of 14.8 years prior to examination. Psychosocial adjustment both pre-TBI and post-TBI was assessed by using the ASEBA questionnaire, whilst cognitive status was evaluated by administering the Rey Osterreith Complex Figure, Logical Memory I and Logical Memory II, the Hayling and Brixton test, the COWAT verbal fluency test and the NART premorbid intelligence test.

Results: Premorbid psychosocial adjustment was found to be linked to post-injury psychosocial functioning. Also, cognitive measures were correlated with aspects of psychosocial functioning.

Conclusions: The results from the present study confirm that psychosocial adjustment after TBI is a multifactorial process. It emphasizes the importance of obtaining a history of the inidividual’s premorbid psychosocial and cognitive history. This is a necessity in the context of both clinical practice and research.