Theoretical models emphasize the importance of both affective and cognitive risk factors in the development of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Two such factors predicting PTSS have been studied extensively: distress intolerance (DI) – an affective factor indicative of the ability to tolerate negative affective states – and attentional control (AC), a cognitive factor reflecting the ability to flexibly shift and maintain attention to goal-relevant tasks. Previous work primarily highlights the independent contributions of DI and AC and their interaction to predict PTSS. Some models, however, suggest a mediational pathway such that AC indirectly affects PTSS via diminished DI. The current paper addressed this gap by first attempting to replicate prior findings, while also exploring this mediation model. Results were examined in two clinical samples – a trauma-exposed sample of adults (study 1; N = 73) and trauma-exposed treatment-seeking adults (study 2; N = 204). Results partially supported our hypotheses; both studies failed to replicate prior moderation findings, but our mediational hypothesis was supported in both samples. Low AC appears to decrease an individual’s tolerance for distressing situations, which in turn increases the severity of PTSS. Results suggest that PTSD treatments may benefit by incorporating components of AC, DI, or a combination of the two to mitigate PTSS. Taken together, this study provides a novel examination of how cognitive and affective risk factors, namely AC and DI, work in tandem to increase PTSS.

理论模型强调了情感和认知风险因素在创伤后应激症状（PTSS）发展中的重要性。已经广泛研究了两种预测PTSS的因素：遇险不耐症（DI）–表示可以容忍负面情感状态的能力的情感因素–和注意力控制（AC），反映了灵活移动并保持对目标注意力的能力的认知因素相关任务。先前的工作主要强调DI和AC的独立贡献以及它们之间的相互作用以预测PTSS。但是，某些模型提出了一种中介途径，即AC通过减少DI间接影响PTSS。本论文通过首先尝试复制先前的发现，同时探索了这种调解模型来解决了这一差距。N = 73）和接受创伤治疗的成年人（研究2；N = 204）。结果部分支持我们的假设；两项研究均未能复制先前的审核结果，但两个样本均支持我们的中介假设。低AC似乎会降低个人对遇险情况的忍耐力，从而增加PTSS的严重性。结果表明，通过合并AC，DI或两者的组合以减轻PTSS，PTSD治疗可能会受益。综上所述，这项研究为认知和情感风险因素（即AC和DI）如何协同工作以增加PTSS提供了新颖的方法。