Inefficient Attentional Control Explains Verbal-Memory Deficits Among Military Veterans With Posttraumatic Reexperiencing Symptoms

Among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), verbal learning and memory are areas of weakness compared other cognitive domains (e.g., visuospatial memory). In this study, previously deployed military veterans completed clinical assessments word vocabulary ( n = 243) a laboratory task measuring encoding, free recall, repetition priming, recognition words 147). Impaired was selectively related to reexperiencing symptoms PTSD but not associated symptom groupings or blast-induced traumatic brain injury. Implicit priming response times following also unrelated symptoms. Instead, slowed during encoding explained associations between performance. These findings consistent alterations in attentional control explaining PTSD-related verbal-memory deficits. Such have implications for understanding trauma-focused psychotherapy recovery, which may depend on efficient processing alter