Religious coping and posttraumatic stress symptoms following trauma: The moderating effects of gender

This study examined the effects of gender on the relationships between religious coping and 2 outcome variables: posttraumatic stress (PTS) and somatic symptoms. Gender effects on the associations between an individual's perceptions about the world and self and between PTS/somatic symptoms were also examined. Participants were 388 religious or traditional Jews who were exposed to a traumatic event according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5). Gender significantly moderated the relationship between negative religious coping and PTS, as well as the relationship between negative religious coping and somatic symptoms; whereas no differences between the sexes were found for low negative religious coping, high negative religious coping was associated with higher levels of PTS and somatic symptoms among women than men. Among women, negative perception of self was associated with a higher level of somatic symptoms. These findings suggest that among women, negative religious coping is associated with elevated PTS and somatic symptoms.