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What about trauma? Exploring the relationship of trauma and educational attainment in Latino males

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What about trauma? Exploring the relationship of trauma and educational attainment in Latino males

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Content Running head: What about trauma 1

What about Trauma? Exploring the Relationship of Trauma and
Educational Attainment in Latino males
by

Mario Manuel Venegas

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

December 2018

Copyright 2018 Mario Manuel Venegas

What about Trauma 2

Acknowledgements
This work is dedicated to the eight young men at a middle school in Santa Ana who many
years ago challenged themselves, albeit reluctantly, to offer me a glimpse of their social, emotional
and psychological interior to which they masked and guarded with tenacity. From them, I learned
how educational systems are ill equipped to deal with impacts of trauma that psychosocial stressors
often bring to students. More so students of color and more specifically boys of color. They
taught me about social emotional learning before it was brought to the lime light. They taught me
about the school to prison pipeline years before I had heard of its research implications. Through
my group work with them, I have committed my educational and professional trajectories to
bringing greater awareness of trauma and the need for Trauma Informed Care approaches to
institutions of education. This research and this degree is for them.
I would also like to thank my life partner, Anthony Cabanillas, who was instrumental in
supporting this endeavor by learning how to cook so that we could continue to eat well. Though
on a serious note, for being my champion and encouraging me to see this milestone to the finish
line. I cannot fail to thank my Mom, Diana Gonzáles. Through her unending support and fierce
motivational strategies, I have come to achieve more than I ever fathomed possible for a boy from
rural Lamont and son of migrant farmworkers. She set the bar high, sometimes too high, but
nothing a little therapy could not resolve.
I would be remiss without thanking Dr. Patricia Tobey for her care, compassion and
patience through my navigating and piecing together this dissertation. This journey was quite the
rollercoaster for me. Dr. Tobey let me ride the roller coaster not for sake of merely riding, but to
help me expand my critical thinking, demonstrate my passion and commitment to this work both
What about Trauma 3

in and out of the dissertation experience. Though at times, frustrating, it was well worth the ride.
I am a better thinker and scholar because of her.
I would also like to thank Dr. Kip Glazer who unexpectedly entered my life as I was
traversing some major life and career changes. There were times when I did not think I was going
to make it and she helped resuscitate life back into this dissertation. Additionally, I would like to
thank Dr. Patrick Crispen and Dr. Alan Green for their guidance and support through this journey
to completion.

What about Trauma 4

Table of Contents
List of Tables 6
List of Figures 7
Abstract 8
Chapter One: Introduction 9
Background of the Problem 9
Statement of the Problem 13
Purpose of the Study 15
Significance of the Study 16
Chapter Two: Literature Review 18
Factors that Impact Academic Achievement for Latino males 18
Socialization and Identity 18
Language 19
Immigration and Migration 20
Discrimination 21
Expectations 22
Psychological Trauma 23
Conceptual Framework 24
Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 25
Anxiety 25
Depression 29
Dissociation 31
Sexual Abuse Trauma Index (SATI) 32
Sexual Problems 35
Sleep Disturbance 36
Summary 38
Chapter Three: Methodology 39
Research Questions 39
Research Design 40
Inclusion 40
Sampling and Population 41
Instrumentation 41
Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 41
Reliability 42
Validity 42
Feasibility of Instrument 43
Data Collection 44
Data Analysis 45
Chapter Four: Results 46
Participants 46
Overview of the Findings 47
Descriptive Statistics 47
Stepwise Multiple Regression 48
Research Question One 49
Research Question 1a 50
What about Trauma 5

Research Question 1b 50
Research Question 1c 51
Research Question 1d 51
Research Question 1e 52
Research Question 1f 53
One-way ANOVA 53
Predictor Models 54
Reliability Statistics 55
Summary 56
Chapter Five: Discussion 58
Introduction 58
Significance of the Study 58
Purpose of the Study 59
Research Questions 59
Summary of Findings 60
Implications for Practice 61
Limitations 62
Recommendations for Future Research 63
Conclusions 65
References 67
Appendix A: IRB Approval 83
Appendix B: Survey Recruitment 85
Appendix C: Informed Consent 86
Appendix D: Survey Demographic Questions 88
Appendix E: Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 89
Appendix F: Qualtrics Online Survey 91
Appendix G: Definition of Terms 104

What about Trauma 6

List of Tables
Table 1: Sample demographics p. 46
Table 2: Descriptive Statistics for Independent Variables p. 47
Table 3: Stepwise Correlations between Independent p. 49
Variables and Dependent Variable
Table 4: One-way ANOVA and Post Hoc p. 54
Table 5: Reliability Statistics p. 55

What about Trauma 7

List of Figures
Figure A: Distribution of scores with Educational p. 48
Attainment as the dependent variable

What about Trauma 8

Abstract
This study explores the relationship of trauma using the six psychological subscales
found in Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 (TSC-40). The subscales
include symptoms of anxiety, depression, dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index, sexual
problems, and sleep disturbance. Through an online or paper survey, research participants self-
report their highest level of education attained and experiencing the trauma symptomologies
using the TSC’s 4-point Likert rating scale to determine level of trauma. Data was analyzed
using multiple regression to explore associations between trauma symptoms and educational
attainment. Analysis revealed moderate negative relationships between educational attainment
and dissociation, trauma, sexual abuse trauma index and sleep disturbance. One-way analysis of
variance (ANOVA) analyses identified four models of fit with statistical significance. The
findings validate the adverse effects of trauma on educational attainment in Latino males and
aligns significant with the literature on the effects of dissociation on learning and achievement.

What about Trauma 9

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background of the Problem
Many of the children and adolescents matriculating in K-12 education have been exposed
to trauma in their formative years. Trauma can be either acute or complex both of which can
have serious impacts to learning and achievement. Trauma can be experienced through “single
blow” traumatic events such as natural disasters, accidents, terrorist acts (Terr, 1991) or crimes
such as domestic violence and rape (Giller, 1999). Acute experiences of trauma cause
psychological distress, although, trauma that is prolonged, intentional, and repeated is often
reported by adults, adolescents and children with serious mental health problems (Jennings,
2004). These prolonged and intentional experiences often include sexual abuse, physical abuse,
severe neglect, abandonment, loss, emotional and psychological abuse, and witnessing violence
(Jennings, 2004). Though, there is significant literature on the social, emotional, psychological,
and behavioral impacts of trauma, there is a paucity of research that bridges how all of these
factors impede overall educational attainment into adulthood. This study explores the
relationship of trauma and educational attainment of Latino males.
The effects of complex trauma in childhood often carry over into adolescence and
adulthood. Children who experience complex trauma are at greater risk for experiencing
domestic violence, sexual assault, poverty, homelessness, and gang and drug related violence
(Saakvitne, 2000). Coping strategies often used by traumatized individuals can result in chronic
and severe lifespan maladaptive behaviors that often result in disease, disability, early death, and
serious social and mental health problems (Felitti, Anda, Nordenberg, Williamson, Spitz,
Edwards, Koss, & Marks, 1998)
What about Trauma 10

Violence exposure is one pervasive method many students face both in their schools and
in communities. Stein, Jaycox, Kataoka, Rhodes, and Vestal (2003) sampled a group of 769
students from the Los Angeles Unified School District and found an average of 2.8 experiences
of direct violence and an average of 5.9 violent events witnessed. It was also found that 76% of
the sample had experienced or witnessed violence involving a lethal weapon (Stein, et al., 2003).
In a similar study examining the pathways from violence exposure to aggressive behaviors in
urban elementary school youth, 99% of the study’s participants reported exposure to at least one
experience involving violence (Ozkol, Zucker, and Spinazzola, 2011). The boys in this study,
reported greater exposure to violence than did the girls. Ozkol et al. (2011) used structural
equation modeling to explore pathways of violence exposure and found aggression and
maladaptive behavioral responses to be related to post traumatic development in addition to
permissive attitudes towards violence, as well as a high risk to anger and hostility.
Many other reported consequences of trauma exposure exist. Statistical figures offer a
lens to the extent of the emotional and psychological responses to trauma. The U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services (2014) published the National Survey of Children’s Health
(NSCH). The NSCH collects a spectrum of health related data on the well-being of children
ages 6-17 in the United States. The NSCH for 2011-2012 reported nearly 23% of children
experienced feelings of unhappiness, sadness or depression. Children receiving mental health
treatment in the same time period was 56.6% of those aged 0-5, 37.4% aged 6 – 11, and 35.9%
aged 12 – 17. Moreover, 39% of children 6 – 17 did not meet the promoting school success
index. This index is measured by level of engagement in school, participation in extracurricular
activities and feeling safe at school (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014).
What about Trauma 11

Exposure to traumatic events often leads to emotional and/or behavioral disturbances.
The New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003) reported approximately 20% of U.S.
children and youth suffer from some level emotional and/or behavioral problem. Research
supports the varying impacts of emotional and behavioral disturbances to academic functioning.
Herman, Reinke, Parkin, Traylor & Agarwal (2009) assert that only 25 – 35% of students with
emotional and/or behavioral problems receive the necessary interventions and support needed to
meet their social, emotional and learning needs. Additional research contends that these
averages are far below the reported and studied prevalence rates of children and youth with
emotional and behavioral problems (Lassen, Steele, & Sailor, 2006; McCurdy, Mannella, &
Eldridge, 2003). McCurdy et al. (2003) posit the influence of poverty and increased exposure to
within family and community based risk factors are key factors to higher rates of exposure to
traumatic events.
Individuals with histories of violence, abuse and neglect in childhood make up a far
majority of participants receiving mental health and substance abuse service systems. Studies
suggest 51 – 98% of public mental health clients with severe psychiatric disorders have
experienced complex and multiple traumas in childhood (Cusack, 2003). One particular study
found that 93% of psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents reported histories of physical and/or
sexual abuse and emotional harm (Lipschitz, Winegar, Hartnick, Foote, & Southwick, 1999).
Calhoun, Jurgens, and Chen (1997) conducted a meta-analysis of juvenile delinquent girls who
were involved in crime and found that 75% of juvenile delinquent girls reported experiencing
sexual abuse.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found
75% of men and women in treatment reported abuse and trauma histories (SAMHA/CSAT,
What about Trauma 12

2000). Moreover, teenagers with substance abuse problems have been found to be six to 12
times more likely to be physically abused and 18 to 21 times more likely to have experienced
childhood sexual abuse compared to those with no substance abuse problems (Clark, Frueh, &
Brady, 2004).
The symptoms of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder have been vastly studied and
key findings provide the impetus for greater trauma training in education. Such findings include
decreased reading abilities and IQ (Delaney-Black, Covington, Odnersma, Nordstrom-Klee,
Templin, Ager, Janisse, & Sokol, 2002) an increase in days absent from school and lower grade
point averages (Hurt, Malmud, Brodsky, & Giannetta, 2001) and increased high school dropout
rates (Grogger, 1997). Additionally there is substantial literature on the impacts of trauma
symptoms on the psychology of learning. Specifically cognitive tasks such as information
processing (Thrasher, Dalgleish, & Yule, 1994; Litz & Keane, 1989; McNally, Luedke, Besyner,
Peterson, Bohn, & Lips, 1987), memory (Burriss, Ayers, Ginsberg, & Powell, 2008; Jelinek,
Jacobsen, Kellner, Larbig, Biesold, Barre & Moritz, 2006; Vasterling, Brailey, Constans, &
Sutker, 1998), and attention (Brandes, Ben-Schachar, Gilboa, Bonne, Freedman & Shalev, 2002;
Buckley, Blanchard, & Neill, 2000; Ashcraft, 1994).
Deficiencies on important cognitive tasks have been found to result in lower achievement
on educational assessments and lower self-academic concept (Da Fonseca et al., 2008). Owens,
Stevenson, Hadwin, and Norgate (2012), found a positive relationship between cognitive
impairments and less abilities to concentrate and intrusion of ruminative thoughts both of which
diminish cognitive resources to learn effectively. Moreover, the New Freedom Commission on
Mental Health (2003) reports that nearly 50% of middle and high school aged students who
dropped out had a diagnosis of an emotional and/or behavioral disorder.
What about Trauma 13

Latino youth are identified as the highest risk ethnic group in the United States to drop
out of high school (Behnke, Gonzalez, & Cox, 2010). This educational problem has been
gaining attention, particularly the high school dropout rates of Latino male students. The 2010
Census demonstrates Latinos accounting for 16% of the U.S. population making them the largest
ethnic minority. Yet educational data exhibits Latinos as the most underachieved. Latino males
have the highest high school dropout rates of both genders and all ethnic groups. The National
Center for Education Statistics (2009), reports high school dropout rates for Latino males at 19%
nationwide. Their Latina female counter parts had a dropout rate of 16% and White high school
males a dropout rate of 6% (National Center for Education Statistics, 2009).
The statistics are vast on the effects of lacked education. In 2008, 41% of Latino men
aged 25 and older did not have a high school diploma thus making Latino men the least educated
(Mather & Jacobsen, 2010). Moreover, young Latino males are less likely to be enrolled in
college compared to other adults in other demographic groups. Only 23% of Latino men ages
18-24 were enrolled in college or graduate school in 2008 (Mather & Jacobsen, 2010). Poverty
has been widely linked with low levels of education. According to U.S. Census the national
poverty rate for Hispanics was 23.6% for 2014 (U.S. Census, 2015). Additionally, those without
a high school diploma and in poverty were 28.9% of the population and those with only a high
school diploma and no college degree was 14.2% (U.S. Census, 2015)
Statement of the Problem
It is imperative to understand this phenomenon from a psychosocial perspective. There is
substantial research that provides an array of psychological and sociological explanations that
account for the faulty rates of Latino males and educational attainment. Adolescent development
can be a daunting time for youth. Patterson & McCubbin (1987) argue that adolescents are
What about Trauma 14

confronted with unique and complex developmental tasks that guide them through the path of
childhood to adulthood. Adolescents are confronted with tasks such as puberty, achieving
expectations, developing appropriate social roles and completing academic requirements
(Patterson & McCubbin, 1987). Many Latino youth also have to deal with concerns of
immigration, assimilation and acculturation, strong cultural and religious values and gender
socialization.
Latino youth are often raised in environments that do not share similar values from those
of the dominant culture. Phinney (1989) stresses the mindfulness of the development of ethnic
identity and the stages minority children and youth journey on their path to become self-
identified. Significant literature suggests school systems and structures use biased approaches to
instruction and curriculum. With these methods, the ethnic identity and ego development of
minority youth is not fostered which can have negative impacts on psychological adjustment and
student achievement.
Reduced funding for varying types of academic and personal support programs have also
contributed to maintaining the alarming rates of Latino male high school dropouts. Behnke et. al
(2010) reveal Latino students drop out due to an array of difficulties in schoolwork, personal
problems, the need to economically support their family, and peer pressure. Investment in career
centers, extracurricular activities, after school activities, parental involvement and increasing
Spanish-speaking staff have been studied as effective interventions and programs to offset
adverse psychosocial stressors (Ortiz, Valerio, & Lopez, 2012).
There is clear evidence to further research the widening gap of Latino males and
educational attainment. The literature offers many indications to this phenomenon. There is no
doubt that Latinos are increasing in population size yet decreasing in graduating high school
What about Trauma 15

(Ortiz et al., 2012). This growing disparity will come to have various systemic and interpersonal
impacts on Latino males. Among them are higher overall health and mental health risks
(Freudenberg, & Ruglis, 2007).
Educational settings are required to achieve academic results. This results in a heavy
focus on curriculums meeting the standards necessary to achieve proposed outcomes, often times
at the expense of training and curriculum that enhances the social and emotional development of
students. Yet, schools are often faced with student behavioral issues that revolve around school
violence (Stein et al., 2003) depressive and anxiety symptoms (Del Barrio, Moreno, & Lopez,
1997) and a lack of motivation (Ryan, 2001). There is an emerging body of research that is
beginning to demonstrate significant associations between academic achievement and social and
emotional well-being (Berger, Alcalay, Toretti, & Milicic, 2011). There exists the need to pay
close attention to the growing disparity, seriously regard the research and look at how
conventional educational settings work with traumatized learners.
Purpose of the Study
It is the purpose of this paper to propose greater awareness and training of the
implications of trauma on learning and overall educational attainment into the field of education.
Learners who have experienced trauma are often regarded as incapable, unmotivated, or defiant.
Punitive approaches are often the practice when intervening on behaviors rooted in trauma. An
emphasis on cognitive and motivational aspects of learning and achievement has constricted
education's view of the larger social environment and limited its theoretical base for effective
intervention in providing trauma informed approaches to teaching traumatized learners.
Furthermore, this study aims to look at the direct relationship of trauma on educational
attainment, to which there is a paucity of research. More so, when applied to Latino males.
What about Trauma 16

The intent of this study is to investigate the relationship between trauma using Briere and
Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist - 40 with levels of educational attainment in Latino
males. Given the prevalence and pervasiveness of trauma that children experience, it is of
interest to explore how symptoms of trauma relate to the high drop rates of males and more
specifically Latino males. The findings of this study may help to guide future training and
preparation for educators, exploring efficacy of current discipline strategies and a greater
emphasis on developing trauma informed school systems. The study was guided by the
conceptual framework of Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist that measures
retrospective childhood trauma and its impacts on adult functioning focusing on six subscales:
depression, anxiety, dissociation, sexual abuse, sexual problems and sleep disturbance. This
study intends to answer the following research questions:
1. What is the relationship of trauma on educational attainment of Latino males?
a) Do symptoms of anxiety affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
b) Do symptoms of depression affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
c) Do symptoms of dissociation affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
d) Do symptoms of sexual abuse affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
e) Do symptoms of sexual problems affect the level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
f) Do symptoms of sleep disturbance affect the level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
Significance of the Study
It is clear that symptoms of trauma have definite implications on an individual’s
ability to develop and learn. It is the purpose of this paper to propose greater awareness and
What about Trauma 17

training of these implications into the field of education. Its intent is to help guide future
training, practice, and policy development that will enhance a traumatized learner’s ability learn
more effectively. Ko et al. (2008) assert a need for creating Trauma-Informed Systems in
education to adequately prepare educators to teach traumatized learners. Harris and Fallot
(2001) have developed a paradigm to implement such Trauma Informed practices and policies.
This study hopes to provide the field of education with greater knowledge on the impacts of
trauma to overall educational attainment

What about Trauma 18

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
Factors that Impact Academic Achievement for Latino Males
The literature has identified common psychosocial themes that have an impact on the
academic success of Latino male students. There is unmistakable support that illustrate males,
more specifically Latino males, are being left behind and dropping out of high school at alarming
rates. It is imperative to understand this phenomenon from a psychosocial perspective.
Adolescent development can be a daunting time for young males as they journey through the
milestones of puberty, gender roles, sexuality and socialization. Latino male youth also have to
navigate the developmental tasks of a respective cultured definition of masculinity that is often
rooted in patriarchy and gender dominance and gender socialization.
Socialization and Identity. Males have been noted to have social constructs that align
with using unhealthy beliefs and behaviors to manifest idealized forms of masculinity and
legitimize themselves as stronger (Courtenay, 2000). There is evidence that posits Latino males
not seeing education as rewarding. Courtenay (2000) argues a greater likelihood that Latino
male youth adopt risky behaviors that compromise their educational endeavors but legitimize
their position of acquired and or perceived patriarchal power. Additionally, the feminist
perspectives posited by Courtenay (2000) may have significance to how Latino males may not
relate or find value in education, which is perceived as a feminist institution given there are more
female than male teachers.
It can be difficult for male adolescents to develop a healthy sense of self due to socialized
and schematic ideas of how males are generally expected to behave. Pollack (1998) describes
boys’ socialization as being raised in a gender straight jacket. Pollack (1998) asserts that boys
are raised in ways that confine their emotional and social development. These two areas of
What about Trauma 19

development have become increasingly important in contemporary education. These complex
struggles often allow boys to be labeled negatively or pejoratively. Katz (1997) further argues
that schools have come to contribute to criminalization and labeling Latino youth as deviants,
gangsters and criminals. This may suggest why males may be having a hard time finding a
connection to educational attainment or feeling safe to learn.
In addition to learning a masculine sense of self, Latino males are also faced with ethnic
identity development. Phinney (1989) used Erikson’s stages of identity development to look at
stages of ethnic identity development in 91 American-born tenth grade minority students. This
study unveiled minority youth to experience three key stages where only one-quarter of the
subjects had explored and committed to an ethnic minority while the remaining subjects had
either not explored or were involved in moratorium (Phinney, 1989). Latino males are engulfed
with various aspects of learning many of which stem outside of the educational bureaucracies.
In addition to the varied learning Behnke, Gonzalez & Cox (2010) identify four
individual youth-related factors that hinder educational attainment by Latinos. The first pertains
to acquiring employment since contributing to one’s family is central to a collective cultural
tradition (Behnke, Gonzalez, & Cox, 2010). Moreover, Perriera, Harris, and Lee (2006) used
data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to understand American high
school completion rates by immigrant and native youth. Perriera et al. (2006) observed that early
employment persuaded more youth to drop out of high school more than poverty, teen
pregnancy, delinquency and opportunities for higher education.
Language. Sizeable research also identifies language barriers and the ability to complete
homework and school assignments as additional barriers for Latino youth to persist in
completing high school. Hess (2000) posits that although Latino immigrant youth at some point
What about Trauma 20

may become proficient or acquire language in a relatively shorter amount of time they continue
to struggle with written and academic usage of the English language. Furthermore, with social
mobility being difficult to acquire for immigrants in addition to other pressing cultural and
familial needs the ability to focus on academic mobility makes it more difficult (Perriera et al.,
2006). Combined with limited English proficiency and little academic support in the homes,
Latino youth are faced with challenges that are not always shared by other racial peers (Glennie
& Stearns, 2002).
Moreover, Cammarota (2004) conducted an ethnography using 40 interviews with first
generation Latino youth ages 17 – 24 in a barrio located in a West Coast city of the United
States. The study included the author spending at least two hours per week over two years
observing the participants in their homes and schools. In this study, Cammarota (2004) reveals
numerous problems for Latino youth that involve problems at school, language difficulties, and
cultural conflicts and for males specifically cutting class, policing and criminalization. These
studies indicate the psychosocial factors to be considered in contributing to Latino male dropout
rates to be very complex and sizable.
Immigration and Migration. The stressors associated with the process of migration
may also increase a child's vulnerability to trauma. As a spectrum, Latinos also differ in
themselves on these ranges, as recent immigrant Latinos do not share the same experiences and
social factors as the non-immigrant Latinos (Perriera et al., 2006). The literature on these
distinctions is more limited as both sub populations tend to be categorized more often under the
larger umbrella of Latino or Hispanic. One distinction that has been identified is the issue of
transiency. Transiency can be a family factor associated with Latino particularly Latino
immigrant families. Latino families have been found to be amongst the most transient and are
What about Trauma 21

likely to move while children are in the schooling years (Rumberger, Larson, Ream, & Palardy,
1999). Glennie and Stearns (2002) studied transient patterns of Latino 9
th
and 10
th
grade students
in North Carolina and found Latino youth had the highest transiency rates of all other ethnic
groups.
Saenz & Ponjuan (2009) further the understanding of Latino male dropout rates by
inducing that Latino males are more likely to involve themselves in alternative career pathways
such as low skilled low wage labor and the military. This suggests Latino males tend to enter the
workforce or military rather than pursue higher education or skilled professions that would
require a high school diploma or equivalent as a prerequisite. Solorzano, Villalpando, &
Oseguera (2005) looked at educational inequalities in Latina/o undergraduate students using
Critical Race Theory (CRT) and assert that out of 100 elementary school students, 52 will
graduate and 48 will drop out of school. Latino males specifically, are more likely to drop out of
high school for reasons that are understudied and extremely complex (Saenz, & Ponjuan, 2009).
Discrimination. Conflicting values between Latino youth and the dominant Anglo
culture is that it increases Latino youth’s risk to acts of prejudice and discrimination. Latino
males experience high rates of discrimination or have seen other Latinos be discriminated
against. Latino males are also at high risk for being labeled in ways that negatively affect self-
efficacy and criminalize their identity (Cammarota, 2004). This adverse experience of
discrimination has impacts on academic motivation and its link to academic success (Alfaro,
Umaña-Taylor, Gonzales-Backen, Bámaca, Zeiders, (2009).
In Alfaro et al.’s (2009) study the authors use an academic resilience perspective in
identifying academic risk factors that have potential to impede academic success. The
longitudinal study used the 4-point Likert Perceived Discrimination Scale and found Latino
What about Trauma 22

males to experience high levels of discrimination, which in turn negatively affects academic
motivation and success. This study provides findings that Latino males experience high rates of
discrimination or have seen other Latinos be discriminated against. Some of the impacts
associated to discrimination and student achievement are highlighted by Zeiders, Umaña-Taylor,
& Derlan’s (2012) 4 year longitudinal study that explored self-esteem, depressive symptoms and
perceived discrimination of Latino students. Zeiders et al. (2012) found that the role of
perceived discrimination is a threat to psychosocial functioning, particularly to Latino male
adolescents. This adverse experience of discrimination as demonstrated by the findings of this
study help to create a causal attribution of discrimination’s impacts on academic motivation and
its link to academic success.
Expectations. There is comprehensive literature on self-fulfilling prophecies and teacher
expectations in relation to student achievement. Brophy (1983) posits that students who are
labeled negatively and/or held to lower levels of expectations have adverse experiences to
student achievement. A study conducted by Ortiz et al. (2012) collected longitudinal data from
the U.S. Census and the National Center for Education Statistics with the intent to compare the
rates of high school dropout, graduation, and college enrollment data for Hispanic, Black and
White populations from 1975 – 2009. The data indicated that Hispanics are dropping out of high
school at rates greatly surpassing that of Black and White students. Ortiz et al. (2012) suggest
this trend is associated with lower achievement due to Hispanics students having an educational
experience that is ridden with lower expectations for their future. This research validates adverse
impacts to students when they are labeled negatively and/or held to lower levels of expectations.
Patterson and McCubbin (1985) also argue that adolescents are confronted with unique
and complex developmental tasks that guide them through the path of childhood to adulthood.
What about Trauma 23

Patterson and McCubbin (1985) highlight the tasks of achieving expectations, developing
appropriate social roles and completing academic requirements. What was found was an
association between stress and student achievement. The lower achieving students reported
higher levels of stress, which was associated to greater substance use. In this study, more males
than females reported substance use due to greater social pressures and make less use of healthy
coping strategies. This information is also useful at understanding coping behaviors and
strategies used by adolescent males when confronted with complex developmental tasks.
Psychological Trauma
Traumatic life experiences are common and there is increased prevalence of trauma and
PTSD. Traumatic experiences, especially those that are severe, prolonged and repeated, can
have significant impacts on how students think, feel and respond in the present. There exists a
relationship between our thinking, feeling, and behaving and our physical and emotional health
(van der Kolk, 1994). Moreover, trauma can overwhelm a person’s system of care that help to
provide a sense of control, connection, and meaning (Herman, 1997). Trauma can be manifested
in ways that overtly appear as negative and difficult behaviors. What are often hidden beneath
these overt behaviors are internalized feelings of sadness and pain which, coupled with
diminished abilities to cognitive functions, can appear to be behaviors of opposition, aggression
and/or truancy.
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V (DSM - V) defines a
traumatic event as one in which “the person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an
event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the
integrity of self or others” (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). A second component to a
traumatic event must include a person responding to the traumatic event with intense fear,
What about Trauma 24

helplessness, or horror (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The DSM-V states that
children may manifest intense fear, helplessness, or horror as disorganized or agitated behavior
(American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
It is important to identify the use of the word trauma in this dissertation as psychological
and emotional harm. Defining trauma in this sense is difficult as each human experience varies
greatly. Thus, psychological and emotional trauma is a matter of how an individual experiences
an event. Johnson and Haigh (2012) offer a working definition of psychological and emotional
trauma that states “a trauma is any event or experience of sufficient force or magnitude that it
overwhelms the capacity of the individual to absorb the experiences and continue essentially
unaffected, and which therefore results in a significant reduction or distortion of the individual’s
ability to carry on with normal behaviour and to function adequately in their lives” (p. 5). Briere
and Runtz (1989) conceptualized trauma using mental health related symptoms that have been
found in the literature to have valid and reliable associations to trauma. This dissertation utilizes
Brier and Runtz’s (1989) conceptual model of defining trauma has having symptoms of anxiety,
depression, dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index, sexual problems and sleep disturbance.
Conceptual Framework
Children who experience developmental or complex trauma may be diagnosed with a
broad array of psychiatric disorders. Psychiatric manifestations of trauma exposure can include
but are not limited to mood, anxiety, behavioral, identity, eating, and substance abuse disorders
(van der Kolk, 2005). Van der Kolk (2005) also proposes the co-occurrence of these disorders.
Briere, Kaltman and Green (2008) posit that trauma also affects dissociation, anger, somatic
complaints and psychosis. Growing research suggests individual who experience trauma are
often exposed to a number of different traumas over the course of one’s lifetime. The more
What about Trauma 25

severe and complex the trauma, the greater likelihood of a life history of multiple interpersonal
victimization experiences (Brier & Spinazzola, 2005; Neuman, Houskamp, Pollock, & Briere,
1996), which can ultimately lead to disease, disability and early death (Felitti et al., 1998). The
prolonged and chronic exposure to trauma is referred to as complex trauma (Herman, 1992).
Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40
This study utilizes Briere and Runtz’s (1989) conceptual model of trauma to examine the
relationship between trauma and educational achievement. Brier and Runtz (1989) construct
trauma using six symptoms empirically found to be associated with traumatic experiences. They
include anxiety, depression, dissociation, sexual abuse, sexual problems, and sleep disturbance
on educational attainment. Additionally, this paper seeks to understand the relationship between
these interdependent trauma symptoms and educational attainment of Latino males.
Anxiety. Anxiety is a mood state associated with preparation for upcoming future
negative events. Fear is a feature of anxiety’s response to real or perceived and present or
imminent danger (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The DSM-V categorizes anxiety
disorders across a continuum. The DSM-V now includes a cluster of Trauma and Stress related
disorders to account for the distinct features between trauma induced anxiety versus general
anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features. This demonstrates the importance of understanding
the underpinnings and manifestations of trauma in its own regard. One disorder that accounts for
much of the literature on the impacts of trauma and functioning is Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD).
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition where a person uses
maladaptive reactions such as re-experiencing, avoiding and/or hyper arousal when confronted
with stimuli that represent an experience where there was great harm or threat to the wellbeing of
What about Trauma 26

the individual (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These reactions are manifested into
behaviors that to an untrained teacher may appear as zoning out, difficulty concentrating,
impulsivity or lack of ability (Sitler, 2009). Through further exploration of these maladaptive
classroom behaviors, the literature has come to expand our understanding and awareness of how
trauma and PTSD symptoms have genuine implications on the learning abilities of traumatized
learners.
The early work of researchers attempted to use an information processing approach to
understand the cognitive basis for emotional disorders. Researchers became increasingly
interested in response latencies of traumatized learners. Thrasher, Dalgleish, and Yule (1994)
were among the early researchers who studied the cognitive processes of those with emotional
disorders, particularly PTSD. In their study, Thrasher et al. (1994) tested and compared PTSD
and non-PTSD subjects’ performance on the Stroop color-naming task. What the authors found
was that those with PTSD exhibited a selective processing bias that delayed their ability to
complete cognitive tasks associated with the given task. The study participants were found to
use disaster words, which the authors suspect, is a result of emotional interference from the
perceived threat stimuli. Their findings were found to be consistent with those of an earlier
study regarded to be among the very first on information processing and PTSD (Litz & Keane,
1989).
In a pioneering study McNally, Luedke, Besyner, Peterson, Bohn, and Lips (1987) found
that patients with combat like PTSD symptoms responded to trauma related stimuli using combat
related words and with psychophysiological reactivity. What this suggests is that students who
use aggressive language or tactics when confronted with trauma like stimuli in the classroom are
responding to the perceived threats in ways they have experienced their trauma experiences. The
What about Trauma 27

psychophysiological reactions would indicate a difficult time in self-regulating behavior, which
can be manifested in ways that would not be conducive to learning. Lastly, the findings of
McNally et al. (1987) provide some insight as to these maladaptive behaviors being manifested.
This may be due to the information pertaining to the trauma related experience already being
stored in long-term memory thus recall of words and behaviors associated to the trauma related
stimuli would resemble those used in the trauma experiences.
There is undisputed evidence that PTSD has negative influences on memory. In a study
conducted by Burriss, Ayers, Ginsberg, and Powell (2008) it was found that veterans with a
clinical diagnosis of PTSD demonstrated impairments in learning and declarative memory and
tasks completion compared to those veterans with no PTSD diagnosis. Intellectual performance
was also found to be compromised. Similarly, veterans with PTSD have been found to not only
perform poorly on memory tasks but display deficiencies in mental manipulation of information
(Vasterling, Brailey, Constans, & Sutker, 1998). Moreover, in their study, Vasterling et al.
(1998) found veterans with PTSD to have difficulties with initial acquisition of information and a
heightened sensitivity to triggers that interfered with learning.
Jelinek, Jacobsen, Kellner, Larbig, Biesold, Barre and Moritz (2006) furthered the
understanding of PTSD and memory by studying both military and non-military populations and
looking at both the implications to verbal and nonverbal memory functioning. In their sample of
40 participants that authors found deficits in memory of verbal material and lesser, although still
impaired were the memory tasks associated with nonverbal material. These studies provide
insight and awareness to tasks involving recall of declarative information, which is often used in
instruction, can be impaired by the symptoms of PTSD. This information can be helpful in
assisting learners with approaches that are sensitive to triggers and cognitive functions.
What about Trauma 28

Attention refers to the resources an individual has to engage in a task(s) that require some
executive control (Buckley, Blanchard, & Neill, 2000; Ashcraft, 1994). The mind is limited in
capacity to process information and engage in multiple tasks at once (Buckley et al., 2000).
Studies have continuously shown impairments in attention to cognitive tasks for those with
PTSD. Brandes, Ben-Schachar, Gilboa, Bonne, Freedman and Shalev (2002) studied the effects
on cognitive performance of 48 patients released from a hospital who were survivors of a recent
traumatic event. The traumatic events consisted of 37 motor vehicle accidents, five terror
attacks, three physical assaults, two home or work accidents and one rape. The authors found
that even survivors of everyday trauma shared similar responses to those of war veterans. The
individuals in the study who demonstrated marked symptoms of PTSD had poorer attention and
lower IQ (Brandes et al., 2002). Similarly, Vasterling, Duke, Brailey, Constans, Allain, and
Sutker (2002) found in combat veterans with PTSD symptoms less proficiency in performance
on tasks assessing sustained attention and working memory even when the authors statistically
controlled for level of combat exposure.
The cognitive resources it takes to assess the variability of a threat can burden cognitive
processes thus further limiting the capacity for our cognitions to engage in viable learning. In a
study conducted by Fani, Tone, Phifer, Norrholm, Bradley, Ressler, Kamkwalala and Jovanich
(2012) it was found that the participants in their study with PTSD demonstrated enhanced fear
startle responses to stimuli that signaled threat. What they observed was these participants with
PTSD had an exaggerated fear expression when triggered that diverted their ability to sustain
attention to cognitive tasks to focus on the threat cues (Fani et al., 2012). This suggests that
learners with PTSD do not have the ability to be attentive to learning but when triggered the
attention is diverted to assess the threat imposed by the incoming stimuli. This can be observed
What about Trauma 29

by a teacher who may be elevating her voice to get a student’s attention but that learner comes
from a history of verbal abuse in a home where yelling is often used. In this case, we might
expect a traumatized learner to attend to the threat cues elicited by the auditory stimuli, which
leaves little to no room for cognitive processes on assigned tasks.
Depression. Recent advances in the understanding of emotions have come to highlight
connections between neuroscience, emotions and cognitive functions. Neuroaffective science
has begun to assert implications of emotions on cognitive functions such as reasoning and
decision-making (Immordino-Yang, 2011). There is a growing body of research that is
expanding the traditional thoughts of logic and reasoning and is beginning to stress the
importance of emotions with regard to biology. Neuroscience has found significance in the role
of healthy attachments to healthy self-regulation. Repeated affection and attuned interactions
between parent and child help the development and maturation of the right hemisphere, the part
of the brain that is integral in helping a child self-regulate (Scaer, 2005). Fosha (2003) asserts
this connection between positive emotional responses to healthy brain development is key to
understanding the significance of the emotional nature of children and their experiences to their
cognitive functioning in the first three years of life. What this means is although children do not
have the capacity for language to describe their early life experiences, their brain creates a blue
print of these experiences and stores their emotional responses, which can be triggered later in
life.
Early relationships with caregivers provide an important context where children begin to
learn about themselves, their emotions and their relationships with others (Cook, Spinazzola,
Ford, Lanktree, Blaustein, Cloitre, DeRosa, Hubbard, Kagan, Liautaud, Mallah, Olafson & van
der Kolk, 2005). If a child experiences maltreatment, they are at great risk of developing
What about Trauma 30

depression and illness (Nanni, Uher, & Danese, 2012). Even with treatment, if a child
experiences ongoing maltreatment a depressive episode may recur at any point in life (Nanni et
al., 2012). Moreover, traumatized individuals who experience depression confront
vulnerabilities with heightened stress sensitivity (Hammen, Henry, & Daley, 2000).
As a result, children with depressive features are at higher risk for victimization. Turner,
Finkelhor and Ormrod (2010) conducted a study using a sample of 1,467 respondents. The
Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children was used to assess for internalizing and externalizing
symptoms of depression, aggression and anxiety. The authors found that those with higher
externalizing and internalizing scores had an increase in peer victimization, maltreatment, and
sexual victimization. Briere and Runtz (1989) found a statistically significant relationship
between retrospective reports of psychological abuse and subsequent low self-esteem.
Experiencing physical and sexual abuse has shown to increase risks for internalizing symptoms,
particularly depression and withdrawal (Caporino, Murray, & Jensen, 2003). More so than
physical and sexual abuse, severe neglect has demonstrated to cause greater emotional and
behavioral symptoms across the lifespan (Caporino et al., 2003). De Bellis (2005) asserts
neglect contributes to adversities, which may contribute to abnormal brain development and
compromised neuropsychological and psychosocial outcomes.
Dissociation. Briere and Spinazzloa (2005) broadly define dissociation as “alterations in
conscious awareness that arise, in part, from defensive changes in otherwise integrated thoughts,
feelings, memories, and behavior” (p.403). The DSM V characterizes dissociation as consisting
of a disruption in the usually integrated functions of consciousness, memory, identity or
perception of the environment (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Early and prolonged
exposure to trauma can lead to the over development of avoidance coping strategies (Briere &
What about Trauma 31

Spinazzola, 2005). Traumatic events have the capacity to destroy bonds and relationships
including that with one’s self. Although dissociation is a coping strategy generally used to
reduce the emotional distress due to trauma, the unresolved emotional impacts tend to surge
when re-victimization or triggering events occur (Briere & Spinazzola, 2005; Chu, Frey, Ganzel,
& Matthews, 1999).
Unresolved trauma often leads to a diminished sense of self-worth in addition to a sense
of feeling disconnected (Herman, 1997). Herman (1997) further argues that harsh or critical
judgments can cause a naïve-preconceived view of normal victim behaviors thus invoking shame
and guilt rather than curiosity, awareness and understanding. This may reinforce the dynamics
of why dissociation occurs. Research posits that an individual sees dissociation as adaptive at
the time of the traumatic experience, which may explain why traumatized individuals use
dissociation as a way to cope with trauma related memories and other stressful life experiences
(Low, Jones, MacLeod, Power, & Duggan, 2000).
Briere, Hodges, and Godbout (2010) examined symptoms of interpersonal trauma and
posttraumatic stress with avoidance behaviors. In their sample of 418 participants, the authors
found statistical significance in the relationships between trauma, avoidance and substance abuse
and dissociation. Using structural equation modeling the authors found statistically significant
direct effects between interpersonal trauma and dysfunctional avoidance. Moreover, stronger
effect sizes were found between the effects of dysfunctional avoidance with substance abuse and
dissociation (Briere et al., 2010). These findings suggest that substance abuse, dissociation and
dysfunctional behaviors can serve as coping strategies to reduce emotional distress in individuals
who have experienced complex trauma.
What about Trauma 32

Self-harm is another characteristic of dissociation. Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is a
common behavior found in individuals, especially women, who have experienced childhood
sexual abuse (van der Kolk, Perry, & Herman, 1991). In their study, van der Kolk et al. (1991)
researched the relationships between childhood trauma, disrupted attachments and self-
destructing behavior. They found that those with a history of sexual and physical abuse were
highly predictive of engaging in self-cutting and suicide attempts. Van der Kolk et al. (1991)
posit that self-destructive behaviors are an attempt either to control a previously unmanageable
situation or to provide a sense of relief. Thus, a traumatized individual is prone to exhibit a
rupture or disconnect to themselves as a way of maladaptive coping to trauma experiences.
Sexual Abuse Trauma Index (SATI). Psychosocial effects of childhood sexual abuse
(CSA) have been studied in relation to adolescent development. The effects include depressive
symptoms, low self-esteem, dissociation, suicidal ideation and/or suicidal behavior, psychotic
symptoms, and eating disorders (Browne & Finkelhor, 1986; Kendall-Tacket, Williams, &
Finkelhor; 1993; Chu, Frey, Ganzel, & Matthews, 1999; Conners, 2001; Tyler, 2002). PTSD
symptoms have been highly correlated with sexual abuse histories (Briere & Runtz, 1990; Elliott
& Briere, 1992). The literature has also demonstrated strong associations between sexual abuse
and difficulty in attachments (Shapiro & Levendosky, 1999; Aspelmeier, Elliott, & Smith, 2007)
as well as psychological coping and interpersonal functioning (Shapiro & Levendosky, 1999)
and substance use (Perkins, Luster, Villarruel & Small, 1998). Studies on Latino cultures have
shown shaming to be a detrimental factor of social, emotional and psychological functioning in
Latino adolescents who have experienced CSA (Fontes, 2007; Feiring, Taska, & Lewis, 2002).
Romantic relationships and the ability to form satisfying friendships are also negatively impacted
by the shame and self-blame associated with CSA (Feirling, Taska, & Lewis, 1998). These
What about Trauma 33

varying interpersonal conflicts have soundly demonstrated to be pervasive and adverse responses
to those victimized by sexual abuse.
Attachments are key to successful relationship building. Establishing and maintaining a
safe relationship with traumatized children is essential for learning (Craig, 2008). Children and
adolescents who have experienced CSA are in a difficult position to establish healthy
connections and relationships as they are at greater risk of establishing avoidant coping styles to
attachment and generally experience greater psychological distress (Shapiro & Levendosky,
1999). Furthermore, CSA has demonstrated negative impacts on the development of close-
adult, parent-child and peer attachment styles (Aspelmeier et al., 2007). In their study,
Aspelmeier et al. (2007) examined the relationship types of college females who had self-
reported experiencing a sexually abusive experience prior to age 16. Despite the substantial
literature that suggests pervasive negative relationship outcomes, Aspelmeier et al. (2007) found
that if the participants were able to find security in peer and parent relationships this helped to
mediate the effects of CSA. This did not hold true for close-adult relationships, which may
suggest greater difficulty for educators to establish security in their relationship building with
children who have experienced CSA thus putting these children at greater risk for diminished
learning.
The literature on sexual abuse of males is sparse and more so when looking specifically
at Latino males. Despite numerous studies exploring the effects of sexual abuse on White and
more so White females, relatively few studies have explored the prevalence and consequences of
how sexual abuse affects boys and boys of color. Studies suggest Latino/a children experience
sexual abuse more than Euro Americans with Latino boys being 44% more likely than Euro
American boys to experience CSA (Newcomb, Munoz, Vargas Carmona, 2009). Studies with
What about Trauma 34

samples of boys from different ethnicities have found that Latino boys experience more sexually
abusive behaviors and more severe sexual abuse than Black boys (Moisan, Sanders-Phillips, &
Moisan, 1997) and Latinos who have sex with men were twice as likely to have reported a
history of sexual abuse than non-Latino men who have sex with men (Arreola, Neilands, Pollack,
Paul, & Catania, 2004). These studies provide insight that demonstrate boys and more
specifically Latino boys experience CSA at significant rates.
Moisan, Sanders-Phillips, and Moisan (1997), in their study assessed the psychological
consequences of depression and anger in Latino and Black boys aged 13 – 18 who experienced
sexual abuse. The sample of Latinos who participated were born both in and out of the United
States. The authors found significant differences in how Latino and Black boys manifested their
anger and depression. Latino boys have been reported to experience higher rates of sexual abuse
with the perpetrator being more likely to be an extended rather than immediate family member
(Moisan et al., 1997). Most of the Latino boys in their sample lived in homes with multiple
families and extended family members. Latino boys were also found to have greater levels of
anger and depression when experiencing sexual abuse (Moisan et al., 1997). Moreover, Latino
boys were also found to have experienced higher rates of genital fondling and anal abuse, which
were positively correlated to anger (Moisan et al., 1997). These studies provide insight that CSA
negatively affects social and emotional functioning, which in turn increases the probability of
diminished learning.
Sexual Problems. A substantial body of research has demonstrated CSA victimization
to disrupt human development and have adverse impacts on later adult functioning. Sexual re-
victimization and sexual problems have been two of the most profound effects (van Roode,
Dickson, Herbison, & Paul, 2009). Chronic CSA has been found to activate stress related
What about Trauma 35

hormone levels and cause an earlier onset of puberty (De Bellis, Lefter, Trickett, & Putnam,
1994), which has been linked to increased sexual behaviors and earlier experiences of sexual
intercourse (Miller, Benson, & Galbraith, 2001). CSA also has been shown to negatively affect
sexual development.
CSA can lead to sexually inappropriate behaviors and hyper-arousal (Finkelhor &
Browne, 1986). Moreover, Finkelhor and Browne (1986) assert the stigmatization, betrayal, and
powerlessness that can result from CSA negatively affects adolescent psychology, which in turn
negatively influence sexual behavioral manifestations. Turner et al. (2010) revealed high levels
of externalizing symptoms in children ages 2 – 17 who experienced sexual victimization.
Another finding of the study was those children with greater externalizing behaviors were at
greater risk for ongoing victimization. Thus, children who experience CSA are at great risk to
manifest sexualized behaviors and in doing so are at greater risk for ongoing sexual abuse.
Briere and Runtz (1990) explored the effects of maladaptive sexual behaviors in a sample
of sexually abused female undergraduate college students and found a statistically significant
relationship between experiencing CSA and manifesting sexually dysfunctional behaviors. van
Roode et al. (2009) further investigated the effects of CSA on later adulthood with a sample of
465 women and 471 men of which 30.3% and 9.1% respectively, reported experiencing CSA.
The authors observed the women with CSA had reported higher numbers of sexual partners,
unhappy pregnancies, abortions and rates of sexually transmitted infections compared to the non-
CSA participants. Among men, the rates of partners increased in later adulthood between ages
of 26 – 32 in addition to the contraction of sexually transmitted infections than those men who
did not experience CSA.
Black, Oberlander, Lewis, Knight, Zolotor, Litrownik, Thompson, Dubowitz, and
What about Trauma 36

English (2009) studied sexual intercourse patterns of adolescents aged 14 – 16 who had
experienced sexual maltreatment before the age of 12. Their findings replicate findings of
previous studies that assessed the relationship between CSA and sexual behaviors in
adolescence. The authors observed those who participants that experienced CSA were 21%
more likely to engage in sexual intercourse at 14 years of age and 51% more likely at 16 years of
age (Black et al., 2009). Maltreatment was found to significantly predict engagement in sexual
intercourse by age 16. At 14, boys were found to report higher rates of sexual intercourse than
the girls in the sample of victimized youth did. It is clear that sexual maltreatment predicts and
increases sexualized risks and behaviors.
Sleep Disturbance. Symptoms of PTSD include nightmares and flashbacks (American
Psychological Association, 2013). Experiencing and/or re-experiencing of nightmares and
flashbacks to traumatic events can result in significant ongoing distress and pose potential mental
health hazards for victims of interpersonal violence and those exposed to disasters (Gray, Elhai,
& Briere, 2010; Briere, 2004). Moreover, disruptions in sleep are highly prevalent in individuals
with symptoms of PTSD (Maher, Rego, & Asnis, 2006; Leskin, Woodward, Young, Sheikh,
2002). Sleep disruptions have been shown to negatively affect an individual’s ability to recover
from trauma and PTSD symptoms (Harvey, Jones, & Schmidt, 2003). Gally & Edelmen (2004)
suggest sleep might provide the conditions necessary to maintain or regain homeostasis. This is
done through the body’s process of reapportionment of resources among intracellular and
intercellular components (Gally & Edelman, 2004). Additionally, sleep has been shown to
facilitate the processing of emotions associated to traumatic experiences (Mellman, David,
Bustamante, Torres, & Fins, 2001).
Although sleep research continues to offer variable explanations of the true physiological
What about Trauma 37

reason for sleep, much research has demonstrated the pathological effects of sleep disturbance
and deprivation. Sleep has been asserted to be a necessary activity to animal life and prolonged
sleep deprivation is fatal to vertebrates and invertebrates (Gally & Edelman, 2004). Large
studies of patients with sleep disturbances who have experiences a wide range of traumas
indicate that 70 – 87% of patients experience some form of sleep disturbance (Maher et al., 2006;
Ohayon, M. M., & Shapiro, C. M. (2000).
Leskin et al. (2002) in their study of 591 participants found having a comorbid
psychiatric diagnosis further increased the chance of sleep disturbance. The authors used the
National Comorbidity Survey (NCS) and found 71% of the participants with a PTSD diagnoses
reported having experienced nightmares. These figures heightened with comorbid features of
PTSD and panic disorder (PD), PTSD and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and PTSD with
major depressive disorder (MDD). These figures were 96%, 83%, and 78% respectively (Leskin
et al., 2002). The figures elevated when controlling for insomnia. PTSD participants reported
experiencing insomnia at rate of 80% while participants with PTSD and PD reported 100%,
PTSD and GAD 83%, and PTSD and MDD 78%. Lastly, participants with PTSD experienced
exaggerated startle response at a rate of 61% while participants with PTSD and PD reported
88%, PTSD and GAD 72%, and PTSD and MDD 64% (Leskin et al., 2002).
Other large-scale studies demonstrate similar effects of trauma on sleep disturbances.
For example, Marcks, Weisberg, Edelen and Keller (2010) studied the relationship between sleep
disturbance and anxiety disorders. Their study sample consisted of 533 participants who were
part of the Primary Care Anxiety Project (PCAP). Of the 533 participants, 74% reported
experiencing sleep disturbance at intake (Marcks et al., 2010). Moreover, those participants with
a diagnosis of PTSD or GAD were two times more likely to experience sleep disturbance (ibid,
What about Trauma 38

2010). In another study, Ohayon and Shapiro (2000) conducted a study with 1,832 respondents
living in an urban metropolitan city. Of this sample, 11.6% reported having experienced a
traumatic event of which approximately two percent were diagnosed with PTSD. Of those with
a diagnosis of PTSD 70% reported some type of sleep disturbance. Spoormaker and
Montgomery (2010) have proposed that sleep disturbance is a core feature of PTSD and trauma.
The authors assert that sleep disturbance is a core feature or PTSD rather than a secondary
symptom (Spoormaker & Montgomery, 2010). These studies clearly demonstrate negative
impacts to quality of sleep, which in turn exacerbate adverse emotional responses and
physiological wellness.
Summary
It is clear that symptoms of trauma have definite implications on an individual’s ability to
develop and learn. It is the purpose of this paper to propose greater awareness and training of
these implications into the field of education and the preparation of educators who often regard
traumatized learners as incapable, unmotivated and instead resort to discipline strategies when
students are exhibiting trauma responses. This push has already been proposed for the fields of
psychology (Courtois & Gold, 2009) and journalism (Dworznik & Grubb, 2007). Research has
begun to investigate ways in which educators can begin to foster greater learning among
traumatized learners. Forging home-school partnerships (D’ Amato & Rothlisberg, 1996)
developing care (Goldstein & Lake, 2000) and safe connections (Goldstein, 1999) are among
some of the most influential ways educators can combat the symptoms of trauma to help a
traumatized learner reduce the load imposed on cognitive processes when a threat is perceived.
More importantly, it proposes to provide insight on the need for schools to become more trauma
informed.
What about Trauma 39

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
This chapter presents the research design, sample and population, instrumentation, data
collection, and data analysis that was used in this study. This study was an exploratory study
that was designed to contribute new knowledge and explore the relationship between two
variables that were found to have profound effects when studied independently or with other
variables, but not together. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships
between trauma using Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist - 40 with levels of
educational attainment in Latino males. Given the prevalence and pervasiveness of trauma
children experience it is of interest to explore how symptoms of trauma relate to the high drop
rates of males and more specifically Latino males. The findings of this study may help to guide
future training and preparation for educators, exploring efficacy of current discipline strategies
and a greater emphasis on developing trauma informed school systems. The study was guided
by the conceptual framework of Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist, which
measures retrospective childhood abuse and its impacts on adult functioning focusing on six
subscales: depression, anxiety, dissociation, sexual abuse, sexual problems and sleep
disturbance. Educational attainment is defined by this study as the highest level of education
attained whether a degree was earned or not.
Research Questions
This study intended to answer the following research questions:
1. What is the relationship of trauma on educational attainment for Latino males?
a. Do symptoms of anxiety affect level of educational attainment of Latino males?
b. Do symptoms of depression affect level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
What about Trauma 40

c. Do symptoms of dissociation affect level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
d. Do symptoms of sexual abuse affect level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
e. Do symptoms of sexual problems affect level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
f. Do symptoms of sleep disturbance affect level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
Research Design
An exploratory quantitative method was employed to answer the research questions of
this study. This was the most appropriate methodological approach as this study intends to
explore relationships and intends to provide generalizations (Creswell, 2007). The TSC – 40
questionnaire was used as the survey method for this quantitative design. The TSC – 40 was
administered cross sectionally with the data being collected at one point in time. Given the TSC
– 40 is a Likert scale measurement a quantitative design is best suited. As such, this study was
designed to be a quantitative research design because it sought to understand relationships using
a questionnaire for data collection with the intent to generalize from the sample to the population
(Creswell, 2007). The research design required voluntary involvement.
Inclusion
Inclusion to participate in the study required a participant to self-identify as Latino and
male. For purposes of this dissertation, a Latino is any self-reported English-speaking person
who identifies as having ethnic ties to a Spanish speaking Latino, Hispanic or Spanish nation.
What about Trauma 41

For purposes of this dissertation, male is defined as any English-speaking person who identifies
as a male either as a sex or gender orientation.
Sampling and Population
The selection process for the research sample used convenience sampling. Despite its
limitations, Fink (2013) asserts convenience sampling is best suited when a sample needs to be
comprised of people who are willing to complete a survey and when availability of participants
is of importance. The TSC – 40 assesses for trauma symptomology thus the respondent needed
to identify in some way as a trauma survivor. Since trauma is so widespread, comprising a list of
individuals who have experienced trauma is not practical, thus, random assignment is difficult.
Stratified and snowball convenience sampling were the primary sampling methods
employed in this study. Creswell (2014) posits stratified sampling to be ideal when sampling the
entire population is impossible or impractical. The research questions of this study necessitate
the responses from participants to identify as a Latino male, thus it was important to the quality
of the sample data to reflect the population. The research sample aimed to include various levels
of educational attainment thus, stratified sampling was also best suited. Due to this study being
an exploratory study and the demographic variables of the sample population being very specific,
snowball sampling was employed to enhance the sample size.
Instrumentation
Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40. The TSC-40 is a revision of the earlier TSC-33
(Briere & Runtz, 1989). The TSC-40 consists 40 self-report items that span across six subscales:
Anxiety, Depression, Dissociation, Sexual Abuse Trauma Index (SATI), Sexual Problems, and
Sleep Disturbances. Each symptom item is rated depending on the symptoms frequency in the
last month on a four point Likert Scale ranging from 0 (never) to 3 (often). It is reported that the
What about Trauma 42

instrument can be completed in 10 – 15 minutes and can be scored in 5 – 10 minutes. The TSC –
40 uses a continuous ordinal scale to rate each of the symptoms.
Reliability. Reliability is the extent to which a measurement measures something
consistently for the same set of people (Salkind, 2013). In this section, we will explore the
reliability of each of the three measurements with a particular look at the internal consistency
computation of Cronbach’s alpha. Briere (1989) added additional questions to create the Sexual
Abuse Trauma Index (SATI) and modified the Sleep Disturbance items to test for a higher
Cronbach’s alpha as the TSC-33  only yielded a .66. Thus, the revision was devised and called
the TSC-40. Elliott and Briere (1992) psychometrically tested the TSC-40 with a sample of
2,963 adult women professionals. In their study, Elliott and Briere (1992) yielded the following
Cronbach’s alpha for the six subscales: Dissociation  = .64, Anxiety  = .66, Depression  =
.70, SATI  = .62, Sleep Disturbance  = .77 and Sexual Problems  = 73 for the Sexual
Problems. The Cronbach’s alpha for the total TSC-40 measurement was  = .90. The TSC-40
loses reliability in this version on the Dissociation, Depression and Anxiety subscales. The
alphas fall below acceptable standards for both the Dissociation and Anxiety scales. There is an
increase in Cronbach’s alpha for Sleep Disturbance and Sexual Problems.
Validity. Validity is the extent to which the properties of a measurement tool measure
what they intend to measure (Salkind, 2013). In this section, we will explore the validity of each
of the three measurements all of which have shown to be reliable. Salkind (2013) asserts a
measurement cannot be valid if it is not reliable. The TSC-40 was found by Elliott and Briere
(1992) to have good discriminate validity. Further analysis of t-scores determined that those
participants who were sexually abused had a higher total TSC score than 68% of the non-abused
participants (Elliott and Briere, 1992). This was determined at a p < .0001 for all six subscales
What about Trauma 43

including the total TSC-40 score. Although the size of the associations were small, Elliott and
Briere (1992) found 18 characteristics of abuse that were correlated at a p < .01 to p < .001.
Zlotnick, Shea, Begin, Pearlstein, Simpson, and Costello (1996) used the TSC-40 in a
sample of 130 psychiatric inpatients. They tested the convergent validity for four of the TSC-40
subscales. They compared the TSC-40’s subscale to the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES).
All subscales were found to be positively correlated at values ranging from .43 to .78 all with p <
.001. The subscales were then compared to the anxiety and depression subscales of the
Symptom Checklist – 90 – R. Correlational values on depression subscales ranged from .46 to
.64 with p < .001 and values on the anxiety scale ranging from .51 to .64 with p < .001.
Additionally the subscales were compared to the Self-Rating Traumatic Stress Scale (SR-TSS)
and correlational values ranged from .40 to .56 at p < .001. Zlotnick et al. (1996) also tested for
divergent validity using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MPPS) and
established a negative correlation in the four subscales ranging from -.24 to -.13. Thus, it was
determined that the TSC-40 demonstrates good convergent and divergent validity.
Feasibility of Instruments. This section addresses the feasibility of the measurements.
The TSC – 40 has been more extensively studied and used in a wider base of populations. It has
been deemed reliable and valid. Similar to the TSC – 33, this measurement is brief and not too
wordy and appears easy to complete. It uses a 5-point Likert scale and literacy level is not high.
It has been tested with a greater set of populations and has continued to maintain its reliability
and validity with a high alpha of .90. The TSC – 40 has been used in clinical inpatient samples,
community samples and university samples. Additionally it has encompassed a diverse range of
demographic participants in terms of gender, socioeconomic status, education levels and race.

What about Trauma 44

Data Collection
The primary instrument for data collection was Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma
Symptom Checklist – 40. The goal of this study was to assess for symptoms of trauma and
understand their relationships to educational attainment. To best understand relationships it was
important to use an instrument that has been psychometrically tested that demonstrates reliability
and validity (Salkind, 2013). Given the extensiveness of exposure to trauma data was collected
using convenience, snowball and stratified sampling methods. Data was collected using the TSC
– 40 questionnaire as the primary instrument.
The TSC – 40 was transcribed into Qualtrics where respondents were able to
anonymously complete the survey using a private link. Recruitment for participants was posted
on social media, specifically Facebook. Additionally, principal investigator recruited
participants through verbal interactions, obtained consent and administered a paper survey.
Principal investigator also provided participants to share links and recruitment email to friends
and family who also met the demographic requirements of Latino males.
For a confidence level of 95% and confidence interval of five, a sample size of 62 Latino
male surveys will be needed to run appropriate statistical analyses to meet a threshold for
generalizability to Latino males. There were a total of 65 survey respondents. All surveys
administered in person were entered into SPSS along with the importation of data from
Qualtrics. Due to missing data, three of the surveys were omitted and a total of 62 surveys were
used for analysis. The data gathered from Qualtrics was then transferred to Statistical Package
for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. SPSS was used to analyze data using descriptive
statistics, multiple regression and post hoc methods.

What about Trauma 45

Data Analysis
The data gathered for this study was analyzed using descriptive statistics, multiple regression
and post hoc methods to observe direct relationships between independent variables and
dependent variable. One-way ANOVA tests were also used to analyze any variance between the
independent variables relationship to the dependent variable. Post hoc test were used to explore
the development of additional models of statistical significance. This study aimed to explore
seven distinct relationships between trauma and educational attainment. The following
associations were analyzed:
a) Correlation between global TSC score and educational attainment in Latino males
b) Correlation between anxiety and educational attainment for Latino males
c) Correlation between depression and educational attainment for Latino males
d) Correlation between dissociation and educational attainment for Latino males
e) Correlation between sexual abuse trauma index (SATI) and educational attainment for
Latino males
f) Correlation between sexual problems and educational attainment for Latino males
g) Correlation between sleep disturbance and educational attainment for Latino males

What about Trauma 46

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
Participants
There were a total of 65 respondents. Due to incomplete survey data, four surveys were
omitted to keep from misrepresenting the final statistical analyses. A complete case analysis was
computed on the final sample size of 61 participants, all of which self-identified as males of
Latino, Hispanic or Spanish origin. Table 1 provides demographic details of the sample.
Table 1
Sample demographics

Variables

Total sample (n = 61)

(%)
Gender
Male

61

100
Ethnicity
Latino, Hispanic or Spanish origin

61

100
Educational Level
Doctoral degree
Some doctoral
Master’s degree
Some masters
Bachelor’s degree
Some bachelors
Associate’s degree
Some associates
High school diploma
GED
Some high school
No high school

2
3
17
1
13
7
2
7
7
0
1
1

3.2
5
28
1.6
21.3
11.5
3.2
11.5
11.5
0
1.6
1.6
Sexual Orientation
Heterosexual
Bisexual
Gay

40
3
18

65.5
5
29.5
Born outside of the United States
Yes
No
No response

10
47
4

16
77
7

What about Trauma 47

Overview of the Findings
Descriptive Statistics
Table 2 provides descriptive statistics of sample (N = 61). Computing descriptive
statistics of the independent variables to the dependent variable, revealed (M = 69, SD = 22.15)
for trauma, (M = 14.44, SD = 4.62) for anxiety, (M = 15.77, SD = 5.21) for depression, (M =
10.51, SD = 4.35) for dissociation, (M = 11.11, SD = 4.45) for sexual abuse trauma index
(SATI), (M = 13.13, SD = 4.79) for sexual problems and (M = 12.41, SD = 4.48) for sleep
disturbance. Figure A demonstrates scores to be of normal distribution.
Table 2
Descriptive Statistics for Independent Variables
Variables Mean Standard Deviation
Trauma 69.00 22.15
Anxiety 14.44 4.62
Depression 15.77 5.21
Dissociation 10.51 4.35
SATI 11.11 4.45
Sexual Problems.

13.13 4.79
Sleep Disturbance

12.41 4.48
Educational Level 7.65 2.57

What about Trauma 48

Figure A: Distribution of scores with Educational Attainment as the dependent variable

Stepwise Multiple Regression

The findings are explained by answering the primary research question followed by
answering each of the subscale questions that comprise Briere and Runtz’s (1989) conceptual
framework of trauma. Seven analyses will be provided using a stepwise multiple regression and
one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) statistical testing. Post hoc tests were used to determine
between variable differences given statistical significance was found across multiple independent
variables. Table 3 provides the stepwise multiple regressions with their respective p values.

What about Trauma 49

Table 3
Stepwise Correlations between Independent Variables and Dependent Variable

Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1. Education
level
_ -.509
**
-.476
**
-.402
**
-.400
**
-.372
*
-.332
*
-.121
2.
Dissociation
-.509
**
_ .894
**
.903
**
.725
**
.863
**
.809
**
.641
**
3. SATI -.476
**
.894
**
_ .904
**
.725
**
.824
**
.755
**
.778
**
4. Trauma -.402
**
.903
**
.904
**
_ .848
**
.953
**
.890
**
.789
**
5. Sleep
Disturbance

-.400
**
.725
**
.725
**
.848
**
_ .839
**
.668
**
.551
**
6. Depression -.372
*
.863
**
.824
**
.953
**
.839
**
_ .826
**
.684
**
7. Anxiety -.332
*
.809
**
.755
**
.890
**
.668
**
.826
**
_ .642
**
8. Sexual
Problems

-.121 .641
**
.778
**
.789
**
.551
**
.684
**
.642
**
_
*
p < .005,
**
p < .001

Research Question One: What is the relationship of trauma on educational attainment in
Latino males? The goal of this research was to explore the relationship between trauma and
educational attainment in Latino males. The hypothesis for this research question is trauma will
negatively relate to the educational attainment of Latino males. The null hypothesis will assert
no relationship between trauma and educational attainment of Latino males.
Findings partially supported the hypothesis and indicated that there is no significant but
moderate negative relationship between trauma and educational attainment. The stepwise
multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis result was used to
explain the relationship between trauma and educational attainment. The correlation index
What about Trauma 50

indicates a low moderate negative relationship (r = -.402, p < .01) between trauma and
educational attainment with high statistical significance. Thus, we conservatively reject the null
and assert a negative relationship between trauma and educational attainment.
Research Question 1a: Do symptoms of anxiety affect the level of educational
attainment of Latino males? The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of
anxiety affects educational attainment in Latino males. They hypothesis for this research
question is symptoms of anxiety will negatively affect the educational attainment of Latino
males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of anxiety have no impact on the educational
attainment of Latino males.
The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis
result was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of anxiety and educational
attainment. The correlation index indicates a low negative relationship (r = -.332, p < .004)
between anxiety and educational attainment with high statistical significance. Thus, we retain
the null and assert symptoms of anxiety do not affect the educational attainment of Latino males.
Research Question 1b: Do symptoms of depression affect the level of educational
attainment of Latino males? The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of
depression affects educational attainment in Latino males. They hypothesis for this research
question is symptoms of depression will negatively affect the educational attainment in Latino
males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of depression have no impact on the
educational attainment of Latino males.
The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis
result was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of depression and educational
attainment. The correlation index indicates a low negative relationship (r = -.372, p < .02)
What about Trauma 51

between depression and educational attainment with high statistical significance. Thus, we retain
the null and assert symptoms of depression do not affect the educational attainment of Latino
males.
Research Question 1c: Do symptoms of dissociation affect the level of educational
attainment of Latino males? The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of
dissociation affects educational attainment in Latino males. They hypothesis for this research
question is symptoms of dissociation will negatively affect the educational attainment of Latino
males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of dissociation have no impact on the
educational attainment of Latino males.
Findings partially supported the hypothesis and indicated that there is no significant but
moderate negative relationship between symptoms of dissociation and educational attainment.
The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis result
was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of dissociation and educational
attainment. The correlation index indicates a moderate negative relationship (r = -.509, p < .000)
between dissociation and educational attainment with high statistical significance. Thus, we
conservatively reject the null and assert that symptoms of dissociation negatively affect
educational attainment of Latino males.
Research Question 1d: Do symptoms of sexual abuse affect level of educational
attainment of Latino males? The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of
sexual abuse affects educational attainment in Latino males. They hypothesis for this research
question is symptoms of sexual abuse will negatively affect the educational attainment of Latino
males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of sexual abuse have no impact on the
educational attainment of Latino males.
What about Trauma 52

Findings partially supported the hypothesis and indicated that there is no significant but
moderate negative relationship between symptoms of sexual abuse and educational attainment.
The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis result
was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of dissociation and educational
attainment. The correlation index indicates a moderate negative relationship (r = -.476, p < .000)
between symptoms of sexual abuse and educational attainment with high statistical significance.
Thus, we conservatively reject the null and assert that symptoms of sexual abuse negatively
affects educational attainment.
Research Question 1e: Do symptoms of sexual problems affect level of educational
attainment of Latino males? The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of
sexual problems affects educational attainment in Latino males. They hypothesis for this
research question is symptoms of sexual problems will negatively affect the educational
attainment of Latino males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of sexual problems have
no impacts on the educational attainment of Latino males.
The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation analysis
result was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of sexual problems and
educational attainment. The correlation index indicates a low negative relationship (r = -.121, p
< .177) between sexual problems and educational attainment and very low statistical
significance. Thus, we retain the null and assert symptoms of sexual problems do not affect the
educational attainment of Latino males.
Research Question 1f: Do symptoms of sleep disturbance impact level of educational
attainment?” The goal of this research question was to explore how symptoms of sleep
disturbance affects educational attainment in Latino males. The hypothesis for this research
What about Trauma 53

question is symptoms of sleep disturbance will negatively affect the educational attainment of
Latino males. The null hypothesis will assert symptoms of sleep disturbance have no impact on
the educational attainment of Latino males.
Findings partially supported the hypothesis and indicated that there is no significant but
moderate negative relationship between symptoms of sleep disturbance and educational
attainment. The stepwise multiple regression was performed and the Pearson’s correlation
analysis result was used to explain the relationship between symptoms of sleep disturbance and
educational attainment. The correlation index indicates a moderate negative relationship (r = -
.400, p < .000) between symptoms of sleep disturbance and educational attainment with high
statistical significance. Thus, we conservatively reject the null and assert that symptoms of sleep
disturbance negatively affects educational attainment.
One-way ANOVA
One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test were then tested between the statistically
significant independent variables to which four models were generated as predictors of
educational attainment. Table 4 provides One-Way ANOVA and post hoc computations

What about Trauma 54

Table 4
One-way ANOVA

One-Way ANOVA (N = 61) Post Hoc

Model

df

F

Sig.
R
Square
Sig. Mean
Differences
Std.
Error
Sig.
1. Dissociation 1 20.67 .000 .259 .000 10.82 .751 .000
2. Dissociation, Sexual
Problems
2 14.35 .000 .331 .016 9.75 .838 .000
3. Dissociation, Sexual
Problems, SATI
3 12.50 .000 .397 .016 9.60 .805 .000
4. Sexual Problems, SATI 2 18.11 .000 .384 .284 9.41 .786 .000

Predictor Models One-way ANOVA regressions computed four models of predictors for
educational attainment. ANOVA regression analyses formulated model one using the predictor
of dissociation. Results indicated that dissociation significantly predicted educational attainment
(F = 20.67, p < .000). However, only 25.9% of the variance in educational attainment could be
explained by dissociation (R square = .259, p < .000). Model 2 identifies dissociation and sexual
problems as predictors of educational attainment. Results indicated that dissociation and sexual
problems significantly predicted educational attainment (F = 14.35, p < .016). However, only
33.1% of the variance in educational attainment could be explained by dissociation and sexual
abuse (R square = .331, p < .016). Model 3 identifies dissociation, sexual problems and sexual
abuse trauma index (SATI) as combined predictors of educational attainment. Results indicated
that dissociation, sexual problems and SATI significantly predicted educational attainment (F =
12.50, p < .000). However, only 39.7% of the variance in educational attainment could be
What about Trauma 55

explained by dissociation, sexual problems and SATI (R square = .397, p < .016). Lastly, Model
4 identifies sexual problems and SATI as combined predictors of educational attainment.
Results indicated that sexual problems and SATI significantly predicted educational attainment
(F = 18.11, p < .000). However, only 38.4% of the variance in educational attainment could be
explained by sexual problems and SATI and (R square = .384, p < .284).
Table 5
Reliability Statistics
Cronbach’s Alpha Cronbach’s Alpha Based on
Standardized Items
N of Items
.837 .963 7

Reliability Statistics
The Cronbach’s Alpha for the data of this study was computed at α = .837. The
Cronbach’s Alpha based on the standardized items (N = 7) was computed at α = .963. These
alphas are strong indicators that this study demonstrates good reliability. Moreover, findings
pertaining to dissociation, sexual abuse trauma, and sleep disturbance were in accordance with
much of the literature. Dissociation has been inextricably linked to trauma and to reduced levels
of achievement and academic performance in the literature. Dissociation in this sample had a
strong correlation to trauma. The inter-item correlation matrix for this sample, identifies the
correlation between dissociation and trauma as (r = .903, p < .000). Additionally, dissociation
was found to be strongly correlated with SATI (r = .894, p < .000) and sleep disturbance (r =
.725, p < .000). These three subscale variables of trauma were found to have the strongest over
all correlation to educational attainment in this sample. Furthermore, SATI was found to be
highly correlated with trauma as a global score (r = .904, p = < .000) and sleep disturbance (r =
What about Trauma 56

.848, p < .000). It worth noting trauma, depression, dissociation and sexual abuse trauma index
all had greater than α = .700 which indicates that each variable as it inter-relates with all others
of Brier and Runt’s (1989) model is reliable. Trauma, depression, dissociation, and sexual abuse
trauma index Cronbach’s alpha range from a low of α = .755 to a high α = .953. This is
consistent with much of the present literature.
Summary
The findings of this study demonstrate some moderate but statistically significant
correlations between trauma and trauma symptoms. Statistically analyses validate trauma (r = -
.402, p < .01), as a variable defined by Briere and Runtz (1989), to have moderate negative
effects on educational attainment of Latino males. Additionally, dissociation (r = -.509, p <
.000), sexual abuse trauma index (r = -.476, p < .000), and sleep disturbance (r = -.400, p < .000)
exhibited moderate correlations with high statistical significance. Although the overall mean
score of trauma for the sample was moderate, these statistically significant p values are good
demonstration that as trauma scores increase we could likely predict that educational attainment
would decrease.
Moreover, an analysis of variance revealed four models that demonstrated validity to
negative effects of trauma on educational attainment in Latino males. The following models
were discovered: dissociation (F = 20.67, p < .000); dissociation and sexual problems (F = 14.35,
p < .016); dissociation, sexual problems and SATI (F = 12.50, p < .000); sexual problems and
SATI (F = 18.11, p < .000). These correlations and models provide some validity to the impacts
of trauma on educational attainment of Latino males. The next chapter will provide a summary
of the study’s findings, limitations, implications for practice, suggestions for future research, and
concluding remarks. Perhaps the most noteworthy finding of this study was the inter-related
What about Trauma 57

correlations between variables. This findings of this study demonstrated good reliability and
strong correlations between trauma, depression, dissociation and sexual abuse trauma index, with
all of these variables having a Cronbach’s alpha with a range of α = .755 to α = .953 across all
inter related correlations between variables omitting sexual problems and sleep disturbance.
These findings continue to add to the existing literature that posits these same reliable dynamics
between the relationships of trauma, depression, dissociation and sexual abuse.

What about Trauma 58

CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION
Introduction
There is a need to further research the widening gap of Latino males and educational
attainment. Latinos are increasing in population size yet decreasing in graduating high school
(Ortiz et al., 2012). This growing disparity will come to have various systemic and interpersonal
impacts on Latino males. Trauma has become a psychosocial phenomenon that has a growing
body of research that looks at how trauma affects overall health and mental health risks
(Freudenberg, & Ruglis, 2007) which in turn make learning difficult.
Significance of the Study
Educational settings are under legislative pressures to achieve academic results, often at
the expense of meeting the social and emotional needs of students. More so, traumatized
students. Schools are often faced with student behavioral issues that revolve around school
violence (Stein et al., 2003) depressive and anxiety symptoms (Del Barrio, Moreno, & Lopez,
1997) and a lack of motivation (Ryan, 2001). Research has begun to demonstrate significant
associations between academic achievement and social and emotional well-being (Berger,
Alcalay, Toretti, & Milicic, 2011). Learners who have experienced trauma tend to be viewed as
incapable, unmotivated, or defiant. Punitive approaches have taken precedence in practice when
intervening on behaviors rooted in trauma.
An over emphasis on testing and academic production has constricted education's lens of
the social environment and limited its pedagogical and practice base for effective intervention in
helping traumatized learners succeed. Furthermore, this study explores the relationship of trauma
on educational attainment, to which there is a paucity of research. It is important to further
understand the growing disparity, seriously regard the research and look at how conventional
What about Trauma 59

educational settings work with traumatized learners. It is clear that symptoms of trauma have
definite implications on an individual’s ability to holistically develop and effectively learn.
Latino youth have been identified as the highest risk ethnic group in the United States to drop out
of high school (Behnke, Gonzalez, & Cox, 2010). The National Center for Education Statistics
(2009), reports high school dropout rates for Latino males at 19% nationwide. In 2008, 41% of
Latino men aged 25 and older did not have a high school diploma thus making Latino men the
least educated (Mather & Jacobsen, 2010). As a result, this study aimed to explore relationships
between trauma and educational attainment in Latino males.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between trauma using Briere
and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist - 40 with levels of educational attainment in
Latino males. Given the prevalence and pervasiveness of trauma that children experience, it is of
interest to explore how symptoms of trauma relate to the high drop rates of males and more
specifically Latino males. The findings of this study may help to guide future training and
preparation for educators, exploring efficacy of current discipline strategies and a greater
emphasis on developing trauma informed school systems. The conceptual framework of Briere
and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist, which measures retrospective childhood abuse
and its impacts on adult trauma symptomology using six subscales, guided the study: depression,
anxiety, dissociation, sexual abuse, sexual problems and sleep disturbance.
Research Questions
1. What is the relationship of trauma on educational attainment of Latino males?
a) Do symptoms of anxiety affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
b) Do symptoms of depression affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
What about Trauma 60

c) Do symptoms of dissociation affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
d) Do symptoms of sexual abuse affect the level of educational attainment of Latino males?
e) Do symptoms of sexual problems affect the level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
f) Do symptoms of sleep disturbance affect the level of educational attainment of Latino
males?
Summary of Findings
This study provided an opportunity to explore the relationship of trauma on educational
attainment in Latino males. This study used a quantitative design to contribute to the paucity of
research on the direct relationships between trauma and educational attainment and the even
smaller body of knowledge on how trauma and educational attainment manifest in Latino males.
The study utilized Briere and Runt’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 that is a
psychometrically tested instrument for measuring retrospective trauma in adult populations.
This study analyzed quantitative data using multiple regression methods and analysis of
variance (ANOVA) post hoc tests using multiple independent variables to one dependent
variable. Brier and Runtz (1989) conceptual framework for trauma includes six subscales that
include anxiety, depression, dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index (SATI), sexual problems
and sleep disturbance. Trauma as a global score and the scores for each subscale were analyzed
to determine relationships to the dependent variable of educational attainment. This study found
a low moderate negative relationship (r = -.402, p < .01) between trauma and educational
attainment. The correlation index indicates a low negative relationship (r = -.332, p < .004)
between anxiety and educational attainment, the correlation index indicated a low negative
relationship (r = -.372, p < .02) between depression and educational attainment.
What about Trauma 61

Implications for Practice
It is the purpose of this paper to contribute to the limited knowledge and propose
greater awareness of the relationship of trauma to educational attainment. Its intent is to help
guide future training, practice, and policy development that will enhance a traumatized learner’s
ability learn more effectively. There is a growing body of research that is providing a much
broader lens to the importance of trauma awareness and social and emotional competencies as
supports for school readiness. Harris and Fallot (2001) have pioneered and called for systems
that service survivors of trauma to begin to envision a new type of trauma informed service
system, calling for a vital paradigm shift that seeks to bring awareness and practices in ways that
avoid possible re-traumatization. Requirements for creating Trauma Informed systems of care
are an administrative commitment to change, universal screening, training and education, hiring
workers and clinicians who possess a basic understanding of trauma, and reviewing policies and
procedures to ensure they promote the principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration,
and empowerment (Harris & Fallot, 2001; Harris and Fallot, 2001). Ko et al. (2008) further
argue a need for creating Trauma-Informed Systems in education to adequately prepare
educators to teach traumatized learners. Providing initial and ongoing professional development
for all employees of a school district on trauma-informed care can be of significant value to the
screening, identification and approaches adults take when working with traumatized learners.
The Sanctuary Model is another Trauma-Informed approach that changes the
paradigm shift from discipline to intervention of trauma related behaviors. The Sanctuary Model
aims to guide schools and organizations to develop a culture of nonviolence, emotional
intelligence, social learning, shared governance, open communication, responsibility and growth
and change (Bloom & Sreedhar, 2008). This study hopes to provide the field of education with
What about Trauma 62

greater knowledge on the impacts of trauma to overall educational attainment with a focus on
Latino males. The following are areas of focus with regard to implications for practice:
1. Trauma Informed Care (TIC)
2. Sanctuary Model
3. Social Emotional Learning (SEL)
4. Mental health
5. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
6. Interdisciplinary approaches
7. Combatting the School to Prison Pipeline
8. Restorative Justice
Limitations
Several limitations are important to address that emerged through this study. The results
of this study have limitations to generalizability. These limitations are:
1. Use of self-reported responses
2. Sample size of only 61 participants
3. Use of convenience and snowball samplings methods
4. Motivation of participants to answer accurately
5. Interest may affect quality of responses
6. Very specific inclusivity requirements for participation
7. Limited to English speaking Latino population
8. Predominantly college attaining population
9. Access to technology
10. Access to social media
What about Trauma 63

11. Access to an email account
The results of this study have limitations to generalizability due to the sample targeting a
very specific single gender and specific ethnic identification. The study relied on the data
collected from self-identified Latino males. The validity of the study also poses limitations as
the study relied on quantitative methods thus negating the ability to address other possible
intervening variables that may have affected the educational attainment of Latino males.
Despite achieving a stratified sample, the sample size of the study poses limitations to the
generalizability of how trauma implicates on educational attainment for Latino males. There
were a total of 62 responders. In addition, the survey was publicized using social media
platforms, email, and in person. Convenience and snowball sampling methods do not provide
for a higher standard of randomization. In addition, participation in this study required access to
a computer, mobile phone, tablet, email or access to principal investigator to read the
advertisement of this study. This significantly limits the possible participation in this study.
Lack of motivation, interest and the survey explicitly stating the purpose of the study was to
explore trauma might have also caused for limited response rates.
Recommendations for Future Research
The results of this study adds to the paucity of research that explores the direct
relationships of trauma and educational attainment and how these relationships affect Latino
males. Future research can focus on further operationalizing trauma and exploring its
implications on learning, motivation and attachment.
As the literature continues to operationalize trauma, the findings of this study can help to
contribute to the significance and implication of dissociation, impacts of sexual abuse and sleep
disturbance. Results of this study found these three variables to have moderate negative
What about Trauma 64

correlations with educational attainment and were found to have high strong positive correlations
to trauma and to each other. Future research can further explore using qualitative and mixed
methods to further understand the delineation and intersectionality of these variables.
Although, this sample of English speaking Latino males scored moderate in depression
and anxiety, the statistical findings did not hold true for what the literature has demonstrated with
other populations. Future research can explore how Latino cultures and Latino males cope with
symptoms of anxiety of depression. Research on resiliency can prove to be very important in
understanding mediating factors for this population as the predictors did not hold true for this
population sample.
Future research can continue to explore the growing body of research that focuses on
social emotional learning (SEL) and Trauma Informed Care. Future research can also broaden
the scope of population by examining other sub sets of populations beyond Latino males.
Moreover, future studies can use qualitative and/or mixed methods designs to explore qualitative
themes or variables that may contribute to the adverse effects of trauma on educational
attainment as well as the resiliency factors that allow for learners who have experienced trauma
to overcome barriers to learning and educational attainment. This author proposes future
research to be more interdisciplinary and explore potential models that blend theory from a more
systematic perspective. There is significant evidence that supports learning being social,
emotional and cognitive. Exploring how the ecology of a student’s environment implicates on
learning and overall educational attainment is of significant value. Combined with Trauma-
Informed care, future research should explore the value of education designing school settings to
become more trauma-informed and ecologically responsible systems. Moreover, studies can be
What about Trauma 65

further research and understand how trauma implicated on academic attainment and how existing
programs can help to mediate these effects. The following can be further researched:
1. Operationalizing trauma
2. Social Emotional Learning (SEL)
3. Trauma Informed Care (TIC)
4. Explore other populations
5. Interdisciplinary approaches
6. Qualitative and Mixed Methods Studies
7. Explore how Trauma Informed and Ecologically Responsive Systems can mediate effects
of trauma
Conclusions
There is considerable literature on the impacts of specific trauma symptomologies on
development, learning and cognition, yet a paucity of literature that explores the direct
relationship of trauma and overall educational attainment. There is significantly less literature on
how trauma affects educational attainment of Latino males. This study aimed to explore the
relationship between trauma symptoms and educational attainment in Latino males. Its intent
was to contribute to the paucity of research on this topic with this specific sub population. There
is substantial research that posits trauma and trauma symptoms having adverse impacts on an
individual’s physical, social, emotional and psychological health. Children who experience
complex trauma are at greater risk for experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, poverty,
homelessness, and gang and drug related violence (Saakvitne, 2000). Children with trauma
backgrounds are high risk for adopting coping strategies that can result in chronic and severe
lifespan maladaptive behaviors that often result in disease, disability, early death, and serious
What about Trauma 66

social and mental health problems (Felitti, Anda, Nordenberg, Williamson, Spitz, Edwards,
Koss, & Marks, 1998). Approximately 20% of U.S. children and youth suffer from some level
emotional and/or behavioral problem (The New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 2003).
Studies suggest 25 – 35% of students with emotional and/or behavioral problems receive the
necessary interventions and support needed to meet their social, emotional and learning needs
(Herman, Reinke, Parkin, Traylor & Agarwal, 2009
This study validates the need to better understand the relationship of trauma and trauma
symptoms to educational attainment. Although the primary population focus was English
speaking Latino males, responses and impacts of trauma have no gender or race. It would
behoove educators the further explore and re-evaluate how we educate traumatized learners.
Students deserve a safe and equitable learning environment. As service providers to students
from all backgrounds, we must ensure sensitivity and competence to their specific needs and
environments. It is important to challenge norms and heuristics that may indirectly harm
traumatized learners. Furthermore, future studies can further explore the qualitative narratives of
students and extract the resiliency of the human experience.

What about Trauma 67

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Van Roode, T., Dickson, N., Herbison, P., & Paul, C. (2009). Child sexual abuse and persistence
of risky sexual behaviors and negative sexual outcomes over adulthood: Findings from a
birth cohort. Child Abuse & Neglect, 33, 160 – 172. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.09.006.
Vasterling, J. J., Brailey, K., Constans, J. I., & Sutker, P. B. (1998). Attention and memory
dysfunction in posttraumatic stress disorder. Neuropsychology, 12(1), 125 – 133.
Vasterling, J. J., Duke, L. M., Brailey, K., Constans, J. I., Allain, A. N., & Sutker, P. B. (2002).
Attention, learning, and memory performances and intellectual resources in Vietnam
veterans: PTSD and no disorder comparisons. Neuropsychology, 16(1), 5 – 14.

What about Trauma 82

Zeiders, K. H., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., & Derlan, C. L. (2012). Trajectories and depressive
symptoms and self-esteem in Latino youths: Examining the role of gender and
perceived discrimination. Developmental Psychology, 49 (5), 951 – 963.
doi:10.1037/a0028866
Zlotnick, C., Shea, M. T., Begin, A., Pealstein, T., Simpson, E., & Costello, E. (1996). The
validation of the Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 (TSC – 40) in a sample of inpatients. Child
Abuse and Neglect, 20(6), 503 – 510.

What about Trauma 83

Appendix A
IRB Approval
University of Southern California University Park Institutional Review Board
3720 South Flower Street Credit Union Building (CUB) #301
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0702
Phone: 213-821-5272
Fax: 213-821-5276
upirb@usc.edu
Date: Apr 17, 2017, 06:01pm
Action Taken: Approve
Principal
Investigator:
Mario Venegas
ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
Faculty
Advisor:
Patricia Tobey
OFFICE OF THE PROVOST
Co-
Investigator(s):

Project Title: What About Trauma?
Study ID: UP-17-00250
Funding: N/A - no funding source listed
The University Park Institutional Review Board (UPIRB) designee determined that your project
meets the requirements outlined in 45 CFR 46.101(b) category (2) and qualifies for exemption
from IRB review. This study was approved on 04/17/2017 and is not subject to further IRB
review.

Consent and recruitment documents are no longer required to be uploaded for exempt studies;
the IRB Administrator will not review the recruitment and consent documents uploaded, nor will
the documents be stamped valid. It is the researchers responsibility to make sure the consent
document is consistent with the study practices as stated in the application, and the document
follows the principles of the Belmont Report, which requires all potential participants to be
informed of the research study, their rights as a participant, confidentiality of their data, etc. If
not, please utilize the template Information Sheet For Exempt Research on the UPIRB and revise
the template to be specific to your study.

Please check with all participating sites to make sure you have their permission to conduct
research prior to beginning your study.

All submissions, including new applications, contingency responses, amendments and continuing
reviews are reviewed in the order received.
Social-behavioral health-related interventions or health-outcome studies must register with
clinicaltrials.gov or other International Community of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)
approved registries in order to be published in an ICJME journal. The ICMJE will not accept
What about Trauma 84

studies for publication unless the studies are registered prior to enrollment, despite the fact that
these studies are not applicable “clinical trials” as defined by the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA). For support with registration, go to www.clinicaltrials.gov or contact Jean Chan
(jeanbcha@usc.edu, 323-442-2825).
This is an auto-generated email. Please do not respond directly to this message using the "reply"
address. A response sent in this manner cannot be answered. If you have further questions, please
contact iStar Support at (323) 276-2238 or istar@usc.edu.

What about Trauma 85

Appendix B
Survey Recruitment

What about Trauma? Exploring the relationship of trauma and educational attainment

You are invited to participate in a study exploring the relationship of trauma and
educational attainment, conducted by Mario Venegas, Doctor of Education Candidate at the
University of Southern California Rossier School of Education.
The study involves answering five demographic questions and rating the frequency of
forty symptoms of trauma you’ve experienced in the last two months. It should take
approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.
If you are at least 18 years old and would like more information about participating,
contact: Mario Venegas at mmvenega@usc.edu

Link to survey: https://usc.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6yPnAzgpPi9zOcZ

What about Trauma 86

Appendix C
Informed Consent

University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education

INFORMED CONSENT FOR NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH

What about Trauma? Exploring the relationship of trauma and educational attainment

You are invited to participate in a research study conducted by Mario Venegas a Doctor of
Education Candidate at the USC Rossier School of Education. Please take as much time as you
need to read the consent form. If you decide to participate, you will be asked to sign this form.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of this study is to collect data that intends to explore the relationship of trauma
symptoms on educational attainment. This data is solely being used for academic purposes to
complete a doctoral dissertation.

STUDY PROCEDURES
If you volunteer to participate in this study, you will be asked to answer five demographic
questions and rate the frequency of 40 symptoms of trauma you’ve experienced in the last two
months. It should take approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.

POTENTIAL BENEFITS TO PARTICIPANTS AND/OR TO SOCIETY
There are no immediate or direct benefits from participating in this research study. However, your
responses may help us learn more about the understanding of trauma symptoms on educational
attainment.

RISKS
The possible risks or discomforts of the study are minimal, however there is the risk that you
may find some of the questions to be sensitive or cause some emotional discomfort. If you find
yourself with feelings of discomfort after taking the survey you may contact the following
agency for assistance:

SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or 1-800-487-4889 (TDD)
Website: https://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/

CONFIDENTIALITY
We will keep your records for this study confidential as far as permitted by law. The information
collected will be stored on a password protected computer. This consent will be kept on file during
the remainder of the study and will be shredded thereafter.

PARTICIPATION AND WITHDRAWAL
What about Trauma 87

Your participation is voluntary. Your refusal to participate will involve no penalty or loss of
benefits to which you are otherwise entitled. You may withdraw your consent at any time and
discontinue participation without penalty. You are not waiving any legal claims, rights or remedies
because of your participation in this research study.

INVESTIGATOR’S CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have any questions or concerns about the research, please feel free to contact Mario Venegas
at mmvenega@usc.edu

RIGHTS OF RESEARCH PARTICIPANT – IRB CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have questions, concerns, or complaints about your rights as a research participant or the
research in general and are unable to contact the research team, or if you want to talk to someone
independent of the research team, please contact the University Park Institutional Review Board
(UPIRB), 3720 South Flower Street #301, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0702, (213) 821-5272 or
upirb@usc.edu

SIGNATURE OF RESEARCH PARTICIPANT

I have read the information provided above. I have been given a chance to ask questions. My
questions have been answered to my satisfaction, and I agree to participate in this study.

Name of Participant

Signature of Participant Date

SIGNATURE OF INVESTIGATOR

I have explained the research to the participant and answered all of his/her questions. I believe
that he/she understands the information described in this document and freely consents to
participate.

Name of Person Obtaining Consent

Signature of Person Obtaining Consent Date

What about Trauma 88

Appendix D
Survey Demographic Questions

1. What is the highest level of education you have completed?
☐Doctoral Degree ☐Bachelor’s Degree ☐High School Diploma
☐Some Doctorate ☐Some Bachelors ☐GED
☐Master’s Degree ☐Associates Degree ☐Some High School
☐Some Masters ☐Some Associates ☐No High School

2. Are you of Latino, Hispanic or Spanish origin?

☐ Yes
☐ No

3. What gender do you identify with?
☐Male ☐Transgender
☐Female ☐Other:_______________

4. What sexual orientation do you identify with?

☐Heterosexual ☐Gay ☐ Other: _______________
☐Bisexual ☐Lesbian

5. Were you born outside of the United States?

☐No
☐Yes

What about Trauma 89

Appendix E
Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 (TSC – 40), 1989

How often have you experienced each of the following in the last two months?
0 = Never 1 = Seldom 2 = Periodically 4 = Often

Symptom Never - - - - - - - - - - Often
1. Headaches 0 1 2 3
2. Insomnia (trouble getting/staying asleep) 0 1 2 3
3. Weight Loss (without dieting) 0 1 2 3
4. Stomach problems 0 1 2 3
5. Sexual problems 0 1 2 3
6. Feeling isolated from others 0 1 2 3
7. “Flashbacks” (sudden, vivid, distracting memories) 0 1 2 3
8. Restless sleep 0 1 2 3
9. Low sex drive 0 1 2 3
10. Anxiety attacks 0 1 2 3
11. Sexual over activity 0 1 2 3
12. Loneliness 0 1 2 3
13. Nightmares 0 1 2 3
14. “Spacing out” (going away in your mind) 0 1 2 3
15. Sadness 0 1 2 3
16. Dizziness 0 1 2 3
17. Not feeling satisfied with your sex life 0 1 2 3
18 Trouble controlling you temper 0 1 2 3
19. Waking up early in the morning and can’t get back to sleep 0 1 2 3
20. Uncontrollable crying 0 1 2 3
21. Fear of men 0 1 2 3
22. Not feeling rested in the morning 0 1 2 3
23. Having sex that you didn’t enjoy 0 1 2 3
24. Trouble getting along with others 0 1 2 3
25. Memory problems 0 1 2 3
26. Desire to physically hurt yourself 0 1 2 3
27. Fear of women 0 1 2 3
28. Waking up in the middle of the night 0 1 2 3
29. Bad thoughts or feelings during sex 0 1 2 3
30. Passing out 0 1 2 3
31. Feeling that things are “unreal” 0 1 2 3
32. Unnecessary or over-frequent washing 0 1 2 3
33. Feelings of inferiority 0 1 2 3
34. Feeling tense all the time 0 1 2 3
35. Being confused about your sexual feelings 0 1 2 3
36. Desire to physically hurt others 0 1 2 3
What about Trauma 90

37. Feelings of guilt 0 1 2 3
38. Feelings that you are not always in your body 0 1 2 3
39. Having trouble breathing 0 1 2 3
40. Sexual feelings when you shouldn’t have them 0 1 2 3

Subscale composition and scoring for the TSC – 40: The score or each subsale is the sum of the
relevant items.

Dissociation – 7, 14, 16, 25, 31, 38
Anxiety – 1, 4, 10, 16, 21, 27, 32, 34, 39
Depression – 2, 3, 9, 15, 19, 20, 26, 33, 37
SATI (Sexual Abuse Trauma Index) – 5, 7, 13, 21, 25, 29, 31
Sleep Disturbance – 2, 8, 13, 19, 22, 28
Sexual Problems – 5, 9, 11, 17, 23, 29, 35, 40

What about Trauma 91

Appendix F
Qualtrics Online Survey

You are invited to participate in a study exploring the relationship between symptoms of
trauma and educational attainment in Latino males, conducted by Mario Venegas, Doctor of
Education Candidate at the USC Rossier School of Education.
The study involves answering five demographic questions and rating the frequency of
forty symptoms of trauma you might have experienced in the last two months. It should take
approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.
The possible risks or discomforts of the study are minimal, however there is the risk that
you may find some of the questions to be sensitive or cause some emotional discomfort. If you
find yourself with feelings of discomfort after taking the survey you may contact the following
agency for assistance: SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or 1-800-487-4889
(TDD) Website: https://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/.
All responses will remain anonymous and data will be stored on a password protected
computer to maintain confidentiality. No one will be able to identify you or your answers, and
no one will know whether or not you participated in the study.
Your participation in voluntary. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to
contact Mario Venegas at mmvenega@usc.edu or you may contact University Park Institutional
Review Board (UPIRB), 3720 South Flower Street #301, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0702, (213)
821-5272 or upirb@usc.edu. Thank you for your participation.

Consent Please select your choice below. Clicking on the "Agree" button indicates that:
You have read the above information
You voluntarily agree to participate
You are 18 years of age or older
o Agree
o Disagree

Are you of Latino, Hispanic or Spanish origin?
o Yes
o No

What about Trauma 92

What gender do you identify with?
o Male
o Female
o Transgender
o Other

What is the highest level of education you have completed?
o Doctoral Degree
o Some Doctoral
o Master's Degree
o Some Masters
o Bachelor's Degree
o Some Bachelors
o Associate's Degree
o Some Associates
o High School Diploma
o GED
o Some High School
o No High School

What about Trauma 93

What sexual orientation do you identify with?
o Heterosexual
o Bisexual
o Gay
o Lesbian
o Other

Were you born outside of the United States?
o Yes
o No

How often have you experienced each of the following in the last two months?
0 = Never 1 = Seldom 2 = Periodically 3 = Often

Headaches
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Sleep Insomnia
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 94

Weight loss (without dieting)
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Stomach problems
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Sexual problems
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Feeling isolated from others
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 95

"Flashbacks" (sudden, vivid, distracting memories)
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Restless sleep
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Low sex drive
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Anxiety attacks
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 96

11_SexProb Sexual overactivity
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Loneliness
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

13_SATI Nightmares
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

"Spacing out" (going away in your mind)
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 97

Sadness
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Dizziness
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Not feeling satisfied with your sex life
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Trouble controlling your temper
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 98

Waking up early in the morning
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Uncontrollable crying
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Fear of men
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Not feeling rested in the morning
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 99

Having sex that you didn't enjoy
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Trouble getting along with others
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Memory problems
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Desire to physically hurt yourself
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 100

Fear of women
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Waking up in the middle of the night
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Bad thoughts or feelings during sex
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Passing out
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 101

Feeling that things are "unreal"
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Unnecessary or over-frequent washing
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Feelings of inferiority
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Feeling tense all the time
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 102

Being confused about your sexual feelings
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Desire to physically hurt others
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Feelings of guilt
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Feeling that you are not always in your body
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

What about Trauma 103

Having trouble breathing
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3

Sexual feelings when you shouldn't have them
o 0
o 1
o 2
o 3
o Thank you!

Resources: SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or 1-800-487-4889 (TDD)
Website: https://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/

What about Trauma 104

Appendix G
Definition of Terms

Anxiety – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and Runtz (1989) to have symptoms of
headaches, stomach problems, anxiety attacks, dizziness, fear of men, unnecessary or over
frequent washing, feeling tense all the time, and having trouble breathing.
Depression – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and Runtz (1989) to have symptoms
of insomnia, weight loss without dieting, low sex drive, sadness, waling up early in the morning,
uncontrollable crying, desire to physically hurt yourself, feelings of inferiority, and feelings of
guilt.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders V (DSM V) – an authoritative volume
that defines and classifies mental disorders in order to improve, diagnosis, treatment and
research.
Dissociation – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and Runtz (1989) to have
symptoms of flashbacks (sudden, vivid, distracting memories), spacing out (going away in your
mind), dizziness, memory problems, feeling that things are unreal, and feeling that you are not
always in your body.
Educational Attainment – for purposes of this study in the highest level of education attained
whether a degree was earned or not.
Latino – for purposes of this study is any self-reported English-speaking person who identifies
as having ethnic ties to a Spanish speaking Latino, Hispanic or Spanish nation.
Male - any English-speaking person who identifies as a male either as a sex or gender
orientation.

What about Trauma 105

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) – a mental health condition where a person uses
maladaptive reactions such as re-experiencing, avoiding, and/or hyperarousal when confronted
with stimuli that represent an experience where there was great harm or threat on the wellbeing
of an the individual (American Psychiatric Association, 2013)
Sexual Abuse Trauma Index (SATI) – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and
Runtz (1989) to have symptoms of sexual problems, flashbacks (sudden, vivid, distracting
memories), nightmares, fear of men, memory problems, bad thoughts or feelings during sex, and
feeling that things are unreal.
Sexual Problems – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and Runtz (1989) to have
symptoms of sexual problems, low sex drive, sexual overactivity, not feeling satisfied with your
sex life, having sex that you didn’t enjoy, bad thoughts of feelings during sex, being confused
about your sexual feelings, and sexual feelings when you shouldn’t have them.
Sleep Disturbance – for purposes of this study is defined by Briere and Runtz (1989) to have
symptoms of insomnia, restless sleep, nightmares, waking up early in the morning, not feeling
rested in the morning, and waking up in the middle of the night.
Trauma – the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V defines a traumatic
event as one in which the person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event of
events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the integrity of self
or others that include a person responding to the traumatic event with intense fear, helplessness,
or horror as disorganized or agitated behavior (American Psychiatric Association, 2013)
Trauma Symptom Checklist 40 (TSC – 40) – an instrument developed by Briere and Runtz
(1989) that measures retrospective childhood trauma using six subscales: depression, anxiety,
dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index, sexual problems and sleep disturbance.

Abstract (if available)

Abstract This study explores the relationship of trauma using the six psychological subscales found in Briere and Runtz’s (1989) Trauma Symptom Checklist – 40 (TSC-40). The subscales include symptoms of anxiety, depression, dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index, sexual problems, and sleep disturbance. Through an online or paper survey, research participants self report their highest level of education attained and experiencing the trauma symptomologies using the TSC’s 4-point Likert rating scale to determine level of trauma. Data was analyzed using multiple regression to explore associations between trauma symptoms and educational attainment. Analysis revealed moderate negative relationships between educational attainment and dissociation, trauma, sexual abuse trauma index and sleep disturbance. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) analyses identified four models of fit with statistical significance. The findings validate the adverse effects of trauma on educational attainment in Latino males and aligns significant with the literature on the effects of dissociation on learning and achievement.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Venegas, Mario Manuel (author)

Core Title What about trauma? Exploring the relationship of trauma and educational attainment in Latino males

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Education (Leadership)

Publication Date 10/12/2018

Defense Date 07/02/2018

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag anxiety,Depression,dissociation,educational attainment,Latino,males,OAI-PMH Harvest,sexual abuse trauma index,sexual problems,sleep disturbance,trauma,trauma symptoms

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Tobey, Patricia Elaine (committee chair), Crispen, Patrick Douglas (committee member), Glazer, Kip (committee member), Green, Alan G. (committee member)

Creator Email mmvenega@usc.edu,venegasmm@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-89165

Unique identifier UC11675189

Identifier etd-VenegasMar-6821.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-89165 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-VenegasMar-6821.pdf

Dmrecord 89165

Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Venegas, Mario Manuel

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA