Properties of the modified self-forgiveness dual-process scale in populations at risk for moral injury.

Despite theory suggesting that self-forgiveness facilitates recovery from moral injury, no measure of self-forgiveness has been validated with individuals exposed to potentially morally injurious events (PMIEs). Military veterans, healthcare workers, and first responders who reported PMIE exposure (n = 924) completed the Self-Forgiveness Dual-Process Scale, which assesses two dimensions of the self-forgiveness process. The first dimension, value affirmation, refers to appraising personal responsibility and being willing to make amends for one's involvement in a PMIE. The second dimension, esteem restoration, refers to accepting oneself as valuable and capable of growth despite one's failures and imperfections. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses replicated the original scale's two-factor structure in 10 items modified to apply to the diverse contexts in which PMIEs occur. Next, we found that the factor structure, item loadings, and item intercepts were fully or partially invariant across professions, genders, races, ages, and religious affiliations in a series of Multi-Group Confirmatory Factor Analyses. Finally, diverging patterns of associations between value affirmation and esteem restoration with moral distress, posttraumatic stress, depression, insomnia, functional impairment, and posttraumatic growth provide evidence of convergent and discriminant validity between the subscales. The modified self-forgiveness dual process scale is the first measure of self-forgiveness to be validated with individuals exposed to a PMIE. Researchers and clinicians can use the scale to examine how self-forgiveness (or difficulties with forgiving oneself) relates to moral injury.

Short-changing the future: The systemic gap between psychology internship stipends and living wages.

Introduction: Providing doctoral internship stipends below living wages may harm interns, the clinical services they provide, and the field of health service psychology as a whole. This study evaluated the extent to which doctoral psychology internship stipends from the 2021-2022 training year for APA-accredited, APPIC-member programs in the US are consistent with living wages in the geographic region where sites are located. Methods: We obtained data reflecting internship sites' geographic location and stipends for the 2021-2022 academic year. Using the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Living Wage Calculator, we computed a living wage for the county in which each internship site is located. Descriptive statistics, discrepancies, ratios, and correlations were calculated to reflect the associations between internship sites' stipends and their local living wages. Results: The average internship stipend was $31,783, which was lower than the average living wage by $2,091. Stipends ranged widely, from a low of $15,000 to a high of $94,595-reflecting a six-fold difference in wages. Although internship sites in higher cost of living areas paid higher stipends, over two-thirds (67.0%) of sites did not pay a stipend that equaled or exceeded a living wage. Ninety-eight sites (15.3%) had deficits of over $10,000 when comparing their stipends to local living wages, with $33,240 as the highest deficit. Discussion: Eliminating obstacles to educating health service psychologists by decreasing the financial burden of training will likely have subsequent critical benefits towards bridging the workforce gap between mental healthcare service needs and available providers, ultimately leading to improved population health.

Predicting Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Treatment Response Using Heart Rate Variability to Virtual Reality Environment and Modified Stroop Task: An Exploratory Study.

Predicting treatment response can inform treatment decisions, expectations, and optimize use of mental health treatment resources. This study examined heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), and a modified Stroop task (mStroop) to predict post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment response. We report on an observational, longitudinal study with 45 U.S. veterans in outpatient PTSD care, who had deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. HR and HRV were collected before, during, and after virtual reality (VR) combat and civilian scenes. HRV recovery was defined as HRV after a 3-minute VR simulation minus HRV during a VR scene. mStroop threat variables included index scores for combat and general threat. Self-report data were collected at baseline and 6 months later. The outcome variable was the 17-item Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Controlling for baseline CAPS and number of combat experiences, the following baseline HRV recovery variables were significant predictors of 6-month CAPS: standard deviation of normal beat to beat interval (SDNN) after combat scene minus SDNN during combat scene and low-frequency (LF HRV) after civilian scene minus LF during civilian scene. HRV at rest, HR reactivity, HR recovery, and mStroop scores did not predict treatment response. In conclusion, HRV recovery variables in the context of a standardized VR stressor were significant predictors of PTSD treatment response after controlling for baseline CAPS and number of combat experiences. The direction of this relationship indicates that greater baseline HRV recovery predicts lower 6-month PTSD symptom severity. This was an exploratory study in need of replication.

An examination of the mental health and academic performance of student veterans.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to provide a more comprehensive look into the demographics of the veteran student subpopulation while exploring the relationship between the mental health of student veterans and their academic performance. Methods: A nationwide anonymous survey was distributed to student veterans who were enrolled in postsecondary institutions. Results: A large number of participants reported distress with symptoms of PTSD, depression, sleep disturbances, and/or suicidal ideation and attempts, and screened likely for mental health problems in these areas. Participants also endorsed academic problems ranging from the ability to stay focused to failing tests and quizzes. Additional findings demonstrated a positive association between GPA and both PTSD and depression. Conclusion: These findings can be used as a platform upon which to begin the discussion on the implications for mental health professionals, administrators, and educators.

Improving Suicide Risk Screening to Identify the Highest Risk Patients: Results From the PRImary Care Screening Methods (PRISM) Study.

PURPOSE: Over 95% of patients who screen positive on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) suicide risk item do not attempt or die by suicide, which could lead to unnecessary treatment and/or misallocation of limited resources. The present study seeks to determine if suicide risk screening can be meaningfully improved to identify the highest-risk patients. METHODS: Patients eligible to receive medical treatment from the US Department of Defense medical system were recruited from 6 military primary care clinics located at 5 military installations around the United States. Patients completed self-report measures including the PHQ-9 and 16 items from the Suicide Cognitions Scale (SCS) during routine primary care clinic visits. Postbaseline suicidal behaviors (suicide attempts, interrupted attempts, and aborted attempts) were assessed by evaluators who were blind to screening results using the Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behaviors Interview. RESULTS: Among 2,744 patients, 13 (0.5%) engaged in suicidal behavior in the 30 days after screening and 28 (1.0%) displayed suicidal behavior in the 90 days after screening. Multiple SCS items differentiated patients with suicidal behavior less than 30 days after screening positive for suicide risk. Augmenting the PHQ-9 suicide risk item with SCS items improved the identification of patients who were most likely to have suicidal behavior within a month of screening positive without sacrificing sensitivity. CONCLUSION: Among primary care patients who screen positive for suicide risk on the PHQ-9, SCS items improved screening efficiency by identifying those patients who are most likely to engage in suicidal behavior within the next 30 days.

Examining the DSM-5 latent structures of posttraumatic stress disorder in a national sample of student veterans.

To date, no studies have examined the latent structures of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within a sample of student veterans. To examine these constructs in a student veteran sample (n = 297), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on six different models of PTSD, including a one-factor model, based on the 20 symptoms found in the DSM-5; PTSD was assessed using the PCL-5. Global fit statistics suggest that fit across all models, including the 1-factor model, were good [RMSEAs(0.054-0.056); CFIs(0.928-0.940); SRMRs(0.043-0.045)], and the AIC was lowest for the seven-factor hybrid model. Statistical tests and fit guidelines for nested models suggest there is no quantitative advantage of a five, six, or seven-factor model over the existing DSM-5 four-factor model. Given the high percentage of student veterans that screened positive for a probable PTSD diagnosis (53 %) in this study compared to non-student veterans (11-20 %) and the general student population (11-15 %) found in other studies, further research is needed to assess the clinical utility of these symptoms and model structures.

Unwanted sexual experiences and retraumatization: Predictors of mental health concerns in veterans.

OBJECTIVE: Repeated exposure to traumatic events has consistently been shown to negatively impact mental health functioning; however, the role of timing of such events has received less attention. The present study evaluated the role of trauma that has occurred prior to military service, during service, and across both points in contributing to the most common and deleterious mental health concerns experienced by military personnel: posttraumatic stress, depression, suicide ideation, and suicide attempts. METHOD: Utah and Idaho National Guard personnel (n = 997) completed online self-report questionnaires of their current posttraumatic stress and depression symptoms, as well as history of potentially traumatic experiences, suicidal thoughts, and actions. RESULTS: Results indicated that history of trauma across time points is associated with negative outcomes across each of these outcomes, with the exception of suicide attempts. Exploratory analyses further revealed that unwanted or uncomfortable sexual experiences (not sexual assault) is the most robust predictor of negative outcomes, with approximately 2 to 7.5 times increased risk for PTSD, depression, suicide ideation, and suicide attempts. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings suggest that individuals with history of trauma prior to military service are at increased risk for developing clinically significant mental health problems if exposed to additional potentially traumatic experiences. Further, other unwanted sexual experiences appear to be particularly detrimental to mental health functioning. Potential implications for military recruitment and conceptualization of traumatic events are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Combat Exposure and Risk for Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors Among Military Personnel and Veterans: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Due to seemingly mixed empirical results, questions persist about the possible role of deployments and combat exposure. We conducted a narrative review and meta-analysis of 22 published studies to integrate findings regarding the relationship of deployment-related predictors (i.e., deployment, deployment to a combat zone, combat experience, and exposure to specific combat events) with suicide-related outcomes (i.e., suicide ideation, attempt, and death). Across all predictors and outcomes, the combined effect was small and positive, r = .08 [0.04, 0.13], and marked by significant heterogeneity, I2  = 99.9%, Q(21)=4880.16, p < .0001, corresponding to a 25% increased risk for suicide-related outcomes among those who have deployed. Studies examining the relationship between exposure to killing and atrocities (k = 5) showed the largest combined effect, r = .12 [0.08, 0.17], and less heterogeneity, I2  = 84.4%, Q(4)=34.96, p < .0001, corresponding to a 43% increased risk for suicide-related outcomes among those exposed to killing or atrocity. Implications for theory, research, and clinical practice are discussed.

Depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and grade point average among student servicemembers and veterans.

The current study examined relationships among self-reported depression severity, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, and grade point average (GPA) among student servicemembers and veterans. We asked 422 student servicemembers and veterans (72% male, 86% Caucasian, mean age = 36.29 yr) to complete an anonymous online survey that assessed self-reported GPA, depression severity, PTSD severity, and frequency of academic problems (late assignments, low grades, failed exams, and skipped classes). Female respondents reported a slightly higher GPA than males (3.56 vs 3.41, respectively, p = 0.01). Depression symptoms (beta weight = -0.174, p = 0.03), male sex (beta weight = 0.160, p = 0.01), and younger age (beta weight = 0.155, p = 0.01) were associated with lower GPA but not PTSD symptoms (beta weight = -0.040, p = 0.62), although the interaction of depression and PTSD symptoms showed a nonsignificant inverse relationship with GPA (beta weight = -0.378, p = 0.08). More severe depression was associated with turning in assignments late (beta weight = 0.171, p = 0.03), failed exams (beta weight = 0.188, p = 0.02), and skipped classes (beta weight = 0.254, p = 0.01). The relationship of depression with self-reported GPA was mediated by frequency of failed examns. Results suggest that student servicemembers and veterans with greater emotional distress also report worse academic performance.