Regular Article/Psychological Consequences of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Predeployment gender differences in stressors and mental health among U.S. National Guard troops poised for Operation Iraqi Freedom deployment†

  1. Robin Carter-Visscher1,
  2. Melissa A. Polusny2,*,
  3. Maureen Murdoch3,
  4. Paul Thuras4,
  5. Christopher R. Erbes5,
  6. Shannon M. Kehle6

Article first published online: 4 FEB 2010

DOI: 10.1002/jts.20481

Issue

Journal of Traumatic Stress

Journal of Traumatic Stress

Special Issue: Psychological Consequences of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Volume 23, Issue 1, pages 78–85, February 2010

Additional Information

How to Cite

Carter-Visscher, R., Polusny, M. A., Murdoch, M., Thuras, P., Erbes, C. R. and Kehle, S. M. (2010), Predeployment gender differences in stressors and mental health among U.S. National Guard troops poised for Operation Iraqi Freedom deployment. J. Traum. Stress, 23: 78–85. doi: 10.1002/jts.20481

Author Information

  1. 1

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), Minneapolis, MN and Sioux Falls VAMC, Sioux Falls, SD

  2. 2

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VAMC, and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN

  3. 3

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VAMC, and Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN

  4. 4

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN

  5. 5

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN

  6. 6

    Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VAMC, and Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN

*Minneapolis VA Medical Center (116B), One Veterans Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55417

  1. †

    This research was supported by grants from the Minnesota Medical Foundation (Grant #3662-9227-06) and Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (W81XWH-07-2-003). The authors wish to thank MAJ Cora Courage and COL Michael Rath for their assistance with subject recruitment for this project. We would also like to express our appreciation to other members of the research team who contributed to this work: Kenna Bolton-Holz, Robyn Campbell, Molly Charlesworth, Olivia Darrah, Courtney Duffy, Ashley Gulden, Nicole Hofman, Katie Koenig, Kari Leiting, Shannon Martin, Lynsey Miron, Amy Moran, Madhavi Reddy, Kailey Roberts, and Alicia Sandberg. Portions of this study were presented at that annual meeting of the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Services Research & Development service.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 18 FEB 2010
  2. Article first published online: 4 FEB 2010

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Abstract

Increased exposure of women soldiers to combat in current conflicts heightens interest in the question of whether risk and resilience factors differ for female and male military personnel prior to deployment. The authors examined this question in a panel of 522 National Guard soldiers (462 men and 60 women) poised for deployment to Iraq. Soldiers completed a battery of self-report measures, including the PTSD Checklist, Beck Depression Inventory-II, and scales from the Deployment Risk and Resilience Inventory. Modest differences were observed between women and men on predeployment risk factors and some risk-related correlations with PTSD and depression measures; however, gender did not moderate the associations between hypothesized risk/resilience factors and baseline mental health. Implications for interventions and future research are discussed.

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