Mental Health and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Personnel Depending on Participation in Active Combat Operations
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29038/2220-7481-2024-02-39-51Keywords:
mental health, post-traumatic stress disorder, military, stress resilience, gender, age, military branch, combat conditions, assessmentAbstract
Topicality. The issue of stress-related conditions in military personnel arises due to high workloads, danger, and psychological stress during service. There is a need to develop and implement effective methods of physical and sports rehabilitation. The Aim of the Study is to investigate the symptoms of PTSD in military personnel actively participating in combat and to identify differences in military personnel of different ages and genders. Research Methods: this study includes literature analysis, comparison, surveys, systematization, and statistical analysis methods. These statistical methods include testing data for normal distribution (Kolmogorov-Smirnov test), descriptive statistics (central tendency and dispersion Me (25; 75) conv. units), chi-square group tests, and rank dispersion analysis. The Mississippi Scale has been used to assess the severity of post- traumatic stress reactions. Participants. The study involved 4403 military personnel, 89,9 % of whom were men. The research was conducted from February 27 to April 15, 2024. Results. The average PTSD score was 69 (54; 79) points, with PTSD symptoms identified in 20.3% of the military personnel, 0,4 % of whom required urgent care. The highest average PTSD scores were observed in military personnel aged 21–30 and over 50 years, while the lowest were for those aged 41–50 years. PTSD scores in men exceeded those in women, which is associated with a higher proportion of men participating in combat. The intensity of PTSD symptoms depends on military specialty and education level. The highest PTSD scores were recorded among junior and senior officers, and the lowest among senior sergeants. Military personnel with higher education showed higher PTSD scores. Statistically significant differences in PTSD scores have been found depending on gender, combat participation, military specialty, and education. No differences have been traced based on marital status, the presence of minor children, and military experience prior to the armed conflict. Conclusion. The study emphasizes the need for targeted approaches in the rehabilitation of military personnel with PTSD.
References
Imas, Ye., & Shynkaruk, O. (2023). Rehabilitation of combatants with post-traumatic stress disorder using esports as a strategic direction of state policy. STEM DAY: professional conversation about the future of STEM education, 65–68. http://surl.li/mxmtrs (in Ukrainian).
Platinyuk, O. B. (2022). Diagnosis, correction, and prevention of non-psychotic mental disorders in combatants who have been wounded: Ph.D. dissertation; Kharkiv National Medical University of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, Kharkiv. 154 p. (in Ukrainian).
Shynkaruk, O. Lysenko, O., & Fedorchuk, S. (2017). Stress and its influence on competitive and training activities of athletes. Physical culture, sports and the health of the nation, 3 (22), 469–476 (in Ukrainian).
Anderson, L. (2021). The Influence of Military Experience on Leadership and Teamwork. Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, 16(4), 147–160 (in English).
Andrieieva, O, Byshevets, N, & Plieshakova, O. (2023) The influence of physical activity on increasing the stress tolerance in higher education students. Theory and Methods of Physical education and sports, 2, 32–36 (in English)..
Bekesiene, S, & Bagdžiūnienė, D. (2022). Reserve Soldiers’ Psychological Resilience Impact to Sustainable Military Competences: On the Mediating Role of Psychological Skills (Effort, Self-Efficacy, Proactivity). Sustainability, 14, 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116810(in English).
Byshevets, N, Andrieieva, O, Dutchak, M, Shynkaruk, O, Dmytriv, R, Zakharina, I, ... Hres, M. (2024). The Influence of Physical Activity on Stress-associated Conditions in Higher Education Students. Physical Education Theory and Methodology, 24, 245–253. https://doi.org/10.17309/tmfv.2024.2.08 (in English).
Charles, W. Hoge, M.D., Carl, A. Castro, Ph.D., Stephen, C. Messer, Ph.D., … Koffman, M. D. (2004) Combat Duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mental Health Problems, and Barriers to Care. New Englang Journal of Medscsgt, 351, 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa040603 (in English).
Dohrenwend, B. P., Turner, J. B., Turse, N. A., Adams, B. G., Koenen, K. C., & Marshall, R. (2006) The psychological risks of Vietnam for U.S. veterans: A revisit with new data and methods. Science. 313(5789), 979–982 (in English).
Greenberg, N., Wessely, S., & Wykes, T. (2009) The psychological health of military personnel returning from deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan: a review of the literature. Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps, 155, 3, 155–160 (in English).
Hamel, J. (2020) Cognitive Flexibility and Stress Management in Military Training. Military Cognitive Science Review, 11(1), 112–125 (in English).
Hoge, C. W., Castro, C. A., Messer, S. C., McGurk, D., Cotting, D. I., & Koffman, R. L. (2004). Combat duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, mental health problems, and barriers to care. New England Journal of Medicine, 351(1), 13–22 (in English).
Hoge, C. W., Auchterlonie, J. L., & Milliken, C. S. (2006). Mental health problems, use of mental health services, and attrition from military service after returning from deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan. JAMA, 295, 9, 1023–1032 (in English).
Hyer, L, Davis, H, Boudewyns, P, & Woods, M. (1991). A short form of the Mississippi Scale for Combat- Related PTSD. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 47, 4, 510–518. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-4679(199107) 47:4<510::aid-jclp2270470407>3.0.co;2-f (in English).
Johnson, R. (2021). Psychological Resilience and Decision-Making Speed in Combat Situations. Journal of Applied Military Psychology, 14(2), 203–218 (in English).
Kang, H. K., Natelson, B. H., Mahan, C. M., Lee, K. Y., & Murphy, F. M. (2023). Post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic fatigue syndrome-like illness among Gulf War veterans: A population-based survey of 30,000 veterans. American Journal of Epidemiology, 157(2), 141–148 (in English).
Keane, T. M., Caddell, J. M, & Taylor, K. L. (1988). Mississippi Scale for Combat-Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: three studies in reliability and validity. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(1), 85–90. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-006x.56.1.85 (in English).
Kulka, R. A., Schlenger, W. E., Fairbank, J. A., Hough, R. L., Jordan, B. K., Marmar, C. R., & Weiss, D. S. (1990). Trauma and the Vietnam War generation: Report of findings from the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study. New York : Brunner/Mazel (in English).
Olff, M., Langeland, W., Draijer, N., & Gersons, B. P. (2019). Gender differences in posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 2, 304–317 (in English).
Perconte, S, & Wilson, A. (1994). Self-report versus observer ratings of distress and pathology in Vietnam veterans with PTSD. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7, 129–134. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02111919 (in English).
Rizzo, A., Shilling, R., & Buckwalter, J. G. (2018). The effectiveness of virtual reality-based intervention for military-related PTSD: A systematic review. Journal of Neural Engineering, 15, 1, 011001 (in English).
Rzońca, P., Podgórski, M., Lazarewicz, M., Gałązkowski, R., Rzońca, E., Detsyk, О. & Włodarczyk D. (2024). The prevalence and determinants of PTSD, anxiety, and depression in Ukrainian civilian physicians and paramedics in wartime–An observational cross-sectional study six months after. Psychiatry Research, 334(3), 115836. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2024.115836 (in English).
Saar-Ashkenazy, R, Bergman, Y. S, Ashkenazy, O, & Guez, J. (2024). Traumatic stress, active engagement and resilience in first responders and civilians in the outbreak of war. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 15, 1. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008066.2024.2328506 (in English).
Seal, K. H., Bertenthal, D., Miner, C. R., Sen, S., & Marmar, C. (2007). Bringing the war back home: Mental health disorders among 103,788 U.S. veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan seen at Department of Veterans Affairs facilities. Archives of Internal Medicine, 167, 5, 476–482 (in English).
Shynkaruk, O, & Davydov, D. (2023). The influence of eSports on the formation of special abilities in servicemen under modern conditions. Theory and Methods of Physical education and sports, 3, 96–102. https://doi.org/10.32652/tmfvs.2023.3.96-102 (in English).
Smirnov, A. (2021). The Role of Stress Resistance in Military Operations. Journal of Military Science, 15, 3. 89–102(in English).
Smith, J, & Jones, M. The correlation between military training and psychological resilience. Military Psychology Journal, 2019, 31, 4, 345–360 (in English).
Smith, T. C., Ryan, M. A., Wingard, D. L., Slymen, D. J., Sallis, J. F., & Kritz-Silverstein, D. (2008). The Millennium Cohort Study. New onset and persistent symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder self-reported after deployment and combat exposures: Prospective population based U.S. military cohort study. British Medical Journal, 336(7640), 366–371 (in English).
Steenkamp, M. M., Litz, B. T., Hoge, C. W., & Marmar, C. R. (2015). Psychotherapy for military-related PTSD: A review of randomized clinical trials. JAMA, 314, 5. 489–500 (in English).
Thomas, J. L., Wilk, J. E., Riviere, L. A., McGurk, D., Castro, C. A., & Hoge, C. W. (2010). Prevalence of mental health problems and functional impairment among active component and National Guard soldiers 3 and 12 months following combat in Iraq. Archives of General Psychiatry, 67(6), 614–623 (in English).
Tukaiev, S., Dolgova, O., Van Den, Tol A. J. M., Ruzhenkova, A., Lysenko, O., Fedorchuk, S., … Voronova, V. (2020). Individual psychological determinants of stress resistance in rock climbers. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 20 (1), 469 – 476. https://doi.org/10.7752/jpes.2020.s1069 (in English).
Vasterling, J. J., Proctor, S. P., Friedman, M. J., Hoge, C. W., Heeren, T., King, L. A., & King, D. W. (2010). PTSD symptom increases in Iraq-deployed soldiers: Comparison with non-deployed soldiers and associations with baseline symptoms, deployment experiences, and postdeployment stress. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 23(1), 41–51 (in English).
Zar, J. H. (2010). Biostatistical Analysis (5th Edition). New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 380 p. (in English).
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc/4.0/88x31.png)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.