Evidence suggests parents of children who experience a trauma may develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which can have significant consequences for their own and their child’s functioning. As such, identifying the rates and possible correlates for the development of PTSD in parents is of clinical and theoretical importance, and would enhance our understanding of how best to support families in the aftermath of trauma. This meta-analysis of 41 studies (n = 4370) estimated the rate of PTSD in parents following their child’s single-incident trauma to be 17.0% (95% CI 14.1–20.0%); when removing samples which were mixed, or not exclusively single-incident traumas the prevalence estimate dropped to 14.4% (95% CI 10.8–18.5%). Pooled effect sizes of 32 potential correlates for parents developing PTSD were also identified. Medium-to-large effects were found for factors relating to the parent’s post-traumatic cognition, psychological functioning and coping strategies alongside child PTSD. Small effects were found for pre-trauma factors, objective trauma-related variables and demographic factors for both parent and child. Results are consistent with cognitive models of PTSD, suggesting peri- and post-trauma factors are likely to play a substantial role in its development. These findings indicate the clinical need for screening parents most vulnerable to adverse post-traumatic reactions within the context of child trauma and tailoring interventions to include the family where necessary.

有证据表明，经历过创伤的孩子的父母可能会患上创伤后应激障碍 (PTSD)，这可能对他们自己和孩子的功能产生重大影响。因此，确定父母患 PTSD 的发生率和可能的相关因素具有临床和理论意义，并将增强我们对如何在创伤后最好地支持家庭的理解。这项对 41 项研究的荟萃分析（n = 4370) 估计父母在孩子的单一事件创伤后的 PTSD 发生率为 17.0% (95% CI 14.1–20.0%)；当去除混合的样本或不完全是单一事件的创伤时，患病率估计下降到 14.4% (95% CI 10.8–18.5%)。还确定了父母发展为 PTSD 的 32 个潜在相关因素的汇总效应大小。发现与父母的创伤后认知、心理功能和应对策略以及儿童 PTSD 相关的因素有中到大的影响。对父母和孩子的创伤前因素、客观创伤相关变量和人口统计学因素的影响很小。结果与 PTSD 的认知模型一致，表明创伤前后因素可能在其发展中发挥重要作用。