Sex Differences in Military Sexual Trauma and Severe Self-Directed Violence
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Authors
Gross, Georgina M.Ronzitti, Silvia
Combellick, Joan L.
Decker, Suzanne E.
Mattocks, Kristin M.
Hoff, Rani A.
Haskell, Sally G.
Brandt, Cynthia A.
Goulet, Joseph L.
UMass Chan Affiliations
Department of Population and Quantitative Health SciencesDocument Type
Journal ArticlePublication Date
2020-02-06Keywords
militarysexual trauma
violence
suicide
gender
Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence
Epidemiology
Gender and Sexuality
Health Services Research
Mental and Social Health
Military and Veterans Studies
Preventive Medicine
Psychiatry and Psychology
Psychological Phenomena and Processes
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INTRODUCTION: Previous research has demonstrated an association between military sexual trauma and risk for suicide; however, risk for self-directed violence such as suicide attempt or nonsuicidal self-injury following military sexual trauma is understudied. This study examines the relationship between military sexual trauma and serious self-directed violence resulting in hospitalization, as well as whether this relationship differs by sex. METHODS: Participants were 750,176 Operations Enduring Freedom/Iraqi Freedom/New Dawn veterans who were enrolled in Veterans Health Administration care during the period of October 1, 2001-September 30, 2014 and who were screened for military sexual trauma. Data were analyzed in 2019. Bivariate analyses and Cox proportional hazards regression models were employed. RESULTS: Women veterans were more likely to screen positive for military sexual trauma (21.33% vs 1.63%), and women and men were equally likely to experience serious self-directed violence (1.19% women vs 1.18% men). Controlling for demographic variables and psychiatric morbidity, military sexual trauma predicted serious self-directed violence for both men and women. Further, men with military sexual trauma were 15% less likely to experience self-directed violence compared with women with military sexual trauma (hazard ratio=0.85, 95% CI=0.74, 0.98). CONCLUSIONS: Military sexual trauma is associated with risk for serious self-directed violence for both men and women veterans, and the relationship may be pronounced among women. Results underscore the importance of incorporating military sexual trauma into treatment and preventative efforts for self-directed violence.Source
Gross GM, Ronzitti S, Combellick JL, Decker SE, Mattocks KM, Hoff RA, Haskell SG, Brandt CA, Goulet JL. Sex Differences in Military Sexual Trauma and Severe Self-Directed Violence. Am J Prev Med. 2020 Feb 6:S0749-3797(20)30017-9. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2019.12.006. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 32037020. Link to article on publisher's site
DOI
10.1016/j.amepre.2019.12.006Permanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/46861PubMed ID
32037020Related Resources
ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1016/j.amepre.2019.12.006