Moral Injury as a Mediator of the Associations Between Sexual Harassment and Mental Health Symptoms and Substance Use Among Women Veterans

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052098548
Author(s):  
Hannah C. Hamrick ◽  
Sarah J. Ehlke ◽  
Rachel L. Davies ◽  
Jennise M. Higgins ◽  
Jennifer Naylor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Women Veterans ◽  
Moral Injury ◽  
Health Providers ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Military Members

Moral injury is an array of symptoms theorized to develop in response to morally injurious events, defined as events that challenge one’s core moral beliefs and expectations about the self, others, and world. Recent measures of moral injury have distinguished self-directed moral injury (e.g., moral injury symptoms that emerge following the perpetration of morally injurious events) from other-directed moral injury, the symptoms of which are believed to stem from one’s response to actions that others have committed (e.g., within-rank violence, failures of leadership, and acts of betrayal committed by trusted others or institutions). Using a convenience sample of 154 primarily former military women, the present study examined if other-directed moral injury symptoms (e.g., anger, betrayal, and mistrust) associated with military experience would mediate the association between military sexual harassment and mental health and substance abuse symptoms. Results demonstrated that 85.8% ( n = 127) of the of this sample of women veterans reported experiencing sexual harassment during their military service. Using a single mediation model, we further demonstrated that other-directed moral injury mediated the association between sexual harassment experience and mental health symptoms. Given the percentage of women veterans who reported sexual harassment, these results suggest that additional training for military members, and particularly, military leaders, is necessary to begin to reduce sexual harassment. In addition, mental health providers who work with current and former military members should consider how other-directed moral injury may be associated with mental health symptoms among women veterans who have experienced sexual harassment while in the military.

scholarly journals COVID-19 and the Mental Health of Canadian Armed Forces Veterans: A Cross-Sectional Survey

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyson L Mahar ◽  
Christina R Rindlisbacher ◽  
Megan Edgelow ◽  
Shailee Siddhpuria ◽  
Julie Hallet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Military Training ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Background There are no data on the impact of COVID-19 and associated public health measures, including sheltering at home, travel restrictions, and changes in health care provision, on the mental health of older veterans. This information is necessary for government and philanthropic agencies to tailor mental health supports, services, and resources for veterans in the peri- and post-pandemic periods. The objective of this study was to compare mental health symptoms between Canadian Armed Forces (CAFs) veterans and the general Canadian older adult population in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods This was a secondary analysis of a cross-sectional study of older adults in the national Canadian COVID-19 Coping Study. Individuals aged 55 years and older were eligible. A convenience sample of older adults was recruited through a web-based survey administered between May 01, 2020 and June 30, 2020. Canadian Armed Force military service history status (yes/no) was ascertained. The eight-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, the five-item Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the three-item Loneliness Scale were used to measure mental health symptoms. Multivariable logistic regression compared the odds of screening positive for depression, anxiety, and loneliness between veterans and non-veterans. Results Of 1,541 respondents who answered the final question (87% survey completeness rate), 210 were veterans. Forty percent of veterans met criteria for at least one of the mental health diagnoses compared to 46% of non-veterans (P = .12). The odds of reporting elevated symptoms of depression, anxiety, and loneliness were similar for veteran and non-veteran respondents after adjusting for confounders. Conclusion Veterans’ report of mental health symptoms was similar to the general population Spring 2020 of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although veterans’ military training may better prepare them to adapt in the face of a pandemic, additional research is needed to understand the longitudinal impacts on physical and mental health.

scholarly journals Cohort profile: the Prospective Research In Stress-Related Military Operations (PRISMO) study in the Dutch Armed Forces

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. e026670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sija J van der Wal ◽  
Rosalie Gorter ◽  
Alieke Reijnen ◽  
Elbert Geuze ◽  
Eric Vermetten
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Network Models ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Prospective Research

PurposeThe Prospective Research in Stress-Related Military Operations (PRISMO) study was initiated to gain a better understanding of the long-term impact of military deployment on mental health, and to map the different biological and psychological factors that contribute to the development of stress-related mental health symptoms.ParticipantsThe PRISMO cohort consists of a convenience sample of Dutch military personnel deployed to Afghanistan between 2005 and 2008. Baseline data collection resulted in the recruitment of 1032 military men and women. Combat troops as well as non-combat support troops were recruited to increase the representativeness of the sample to the population as a whole.Findings to dateThe prevalence of various mental health symptoms increases after deployment in PRISMO cohort members, but symptom progression over time appears to be specific for various mental health symptoms. For post-traumatic stress disorder, we found a short-term symptom increase within 6 months after deployment (8.2%), and a long-term symptom increase at 5 years after deployment (12.9%). Several biological vulnerability factors associated with the development of stress-related conditions after deployment were identified, including predeployment glucocorticoid receptor sensitivity and predeployment testosterone level. Thus far, 34 publications have resulted from the cohort.Future plansVarious analyses are planned that will include the prevalence of mental health symptoms at 10 years postdeployment, as well as trajectory analyses that capture the longitudinal development of symptoms. Furthermore, we will use a machine learning approach to develop predictive and network models for several mental health symptoms, incorporating biological, psychological and social factors.

Insomnia Precipitating Events among Women Veterans: The Impact of Traumatic and Nontraumatic Events on Sleep and Mental Health Symptoms

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Gwendolyn C. Carlson ◽  
Monica R. Kelly ◽  
Austin M. Grinberg ◽  
Michael Mitchell ◽  
Sarah Kate McGowan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Women Veterans ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
The Impact

Adversity during military service: the impact of military sexual trauma, emotional bullying and physical assault on the mental health and well-being of women veterans

2021 ◽  
pp. bmjmilitary-2021-001948
Author(s):  
Laura Josephine Hendrikx ◽  
V Williamson ◽  
D Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Women Veterans ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical Assault ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

IntroductionDespite making up about 11% of the UK military, there remains limited investigation on the impact of adversity women experience during their service in the UK military. Military adversity can result in a range of well-being difficulties that may persist following transition out of military. The present study therefore examined the prevalence and correlates of different types of military adversity (defined as sexual harassment, sexual assault, emotional bullying and physical assault) within a community sample of UK women veterans.MethodsParticipants were recruited from a UK charity supporting women veterans. 750 women veterans completed an online survey collecting information on sociodemographic and military factors, military adversity, as well as mental health and well-being difficulties. Associations between variables were explored using multivariate logistic regressions.ResultsThe findings indicate a high prevalence of military adversity (22.5% sexual harassment, 5.1% sexual assault, 22.7% emotional bullying and 3.3% physical assault). Younger women, those who held an officer rank during service and those who reported having a combat or combat support role during service were most at risk of military adversity. All types of adversity were significantly associated with probable post-traumatic stress disorder. Sexual harassment was additionally significantly associated with physical somatisation; sexual assault with alcohol difficulties; and emotional bullying with common mental health difficulties, low social support and loneliness.ConclusionsThis study indicates that UK women veterans are at risk of a range of adverse experiences during military service and provides evidence of the impact of such adversities on mental health and well-being. Further research is required to better understand these relationships.

Psychological symptomatology, self-esteem and life satisfactions of women from polygamous and monogamous marriages in Syria

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 196-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alean Al-Krenawi ◽  
Yaniv Kanat-Maymon
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Health Practice ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Mental Health Practice ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Psychological Symptomatology ◽  
Mental Health Symptomatology

This study is the first to examine and compare the psychological symptomatology, self-esteem and life satisfaction of women in polygamous and monogamous relationships in Syria. A convenience sample of 276 women was studied, of whom 163 were senior wives in polygamous marriages and 113 were wives in monogamous marriages. Findings revealed that senior wives in polygamous marriages experienced lower self-esteem, less life satisfaction and more mental health symptomatology than women in monogamous marriages. Many of the mental health symptoms were different; noteworthy were elevated somatization, depression, hostility and psychoticism. Implications for mental health practice, policy and further research are discussed.

Length of Deployments As a Predictor of Mental Health Symptoms in Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryann Debeer ◽  
Sandra B. Morissette ◽  
Nathan A. Kimbrel ◽  
Eric C. Meyer ◽  
Suzy B. Gulliver
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Operation Iraqi Freedom ◽  
Mental Health Symptoms ◽  
Health Symptoms ◽  
Iraqi Freedom
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