Abstract:
Background: The link between trauma exposure and psychotic disorders is well-established. Further, specific
types of trauma may be associated with specific psychotic symptoms. Network analysis is an approach that can
advance our understanding of the associations across trauma types and psychotic symptoms.
Methods: We conducted a network analysis with data from 16,628 adult participants (mean age [standard de-
viation] = 36.3 years [11.5]; 55.8% males) with psychotic disorders in East Africa recruited between 2018 and
2023. We used the Life Events Checklist and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview to determine
whether specific trauma types experienced over the life course and specific psychotic symptoms were connected.
We used an Ising model to estimate the network connections and bridge centrality statistics to identify nodes that
may influence trauma types and psychotic symptoms.
Results: The trauma type “exposure to a war zone” had the highest bridge strength, betweenness, and closeness.
The psychotic symptom “odd or unusual beliefs” had the second highest bridge strength. Exposure to a war zone
was directly connected to visual hallucinations, odd or unusual beliefs, passivity phenomena, and disorganized
speech. Odd or unusual beliefs were directly connected to transportation accidents, physical assault, war, and
witnessing sudden accidental death.