Subject(s)
Adverse Childhood Experiences , Interpersonal Relations , Resilience, Psychological/classification , Adult , Female , Hawaii , Humans , Male , Military Personnel/psychology , Military Personnel/statistics & numerical data , Protective Factors , Psychometrics/instrumentation , Psychometrics/methods , Psychometrics/statistics & numerical data , Qualitative Research , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
This exploratory study examines the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in soldiers who sought behavioral health support during a combat deployment. We conducted a secondary analysis of data extracted from two studies on the basis of retrospective reviews of behavioral health records of soldiers deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. Of 162 clinical samples, 135 (83%) reported at least one type of childhood adversity. ACE scores ranged from 0 to 9 with a mean of 3 (standard deviation = 2.4) and mode of 0. A total of 65 (40%) experienced four or more ACEs. Parental divorce or separation was the most frequently reported childhood experience and was associated with witnessing domestic violence, having a member of the household abuse substances, and being physically and psychologically abused as a child. A sizeable proportion lived with a household member who had been in prison. Soldiers with an extensive history of ACEs may benefit from additional mentoring from frontline leaders and prevention measures instituted by unit behavioral health personnel.
Subject(s)
Behavioral Medicine/statistics & numerical data , Child Abuse/psychology , Military Personnel/psychology , Prevalence , Adaptation, Psychological , Adolescent , Adult , Afghan Campaign 2001- , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Stress, Psychological/complications , Stress, Psychological/psychology , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Counterinsurgency (COIN) operations have served as the fundamental component of the nation's military strategy. Without the established boundaries of conventional operations, switching between diplomatic and combative roles can expose Soldiers to unique stressors when conducting COIN operations. An exploratory study of descriptive data obtained from a retrospective records review of 140 service members deployed to Operation Enduring Freedom identified and described problems in psychosocial functioning. Behavioral health records for the first 7 months of the deployment and throughout the first year of redeployment were reviewed. The most common problems reported by Soldiers were operational stress characterized by anxiety, fear, irritability, frustration, and isolation. Additionally, most of the Soldiers engaged services for psychosocial challenges within the first year of returning from deployment. Establishing reliable access to behavioral healthcare has emerged as an essential component of total force protection in COIN deployments.
