Can we use an interventionist-causal paradigm to untangle the relationship between trauma, PTSD and psychosis?

There is mounting evidence that exposure to traumatic or adverse life-events is associated with increased risk of psychosis (Read et al., 2001; Bendall et al., 2008, 2010; Read and Bentall, 2012). However, to inform treatment and prevention, it is necessary to go beyond association to understand how traumatic experiences may lead to the development of psychotic symptoms. In this paper, we argue that doing so requires the identification of biological, psychological and social processes that may be involved in the observed trauma–psychosis relationship, and determining which are causally related. We propose that this can be done in conjunction with focused intervention procedures that may test theoretical mechanisms, in parallel with piloting potential components of therapeutic interventions.