Academic Department of Military Mental Health, Weston Education Centre, King's College London, London, UK.
King's Centre for Military Health Research, Weston Education Centre, King's College London, London, UK.
Occup Med (Lond). 2019 Dec 31;69(8-9):549-558. doi: 10.1093/occmed/kqz103.
Internationally, women are about to undertake combat duties alongside their male colleagues. The psychological effect of this policy change is largely unknown.
To explore the mental health impact of combat exposure among military women.
Self-report, between-subjects survey data were collected in Iraq and Afghanistan on four occasions between 2009 and 2014 (n = 4139). Differences in mental health, stigmatization, deployment experiences, intimate relationship impact, perception of family support levels, unit cohesion, leadership and help-seeking were compared between deployed men and women. Comparisons were repeated with the study sample stratified by level of combat exposure. Outcomes were examined using logistic regression adjusted for socio-demographic, mental health and military factors.
Overall, 4.1% of women and 4.3% of men reported post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (odds ratio (OR) 1.31, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.70-2.46); 22% of women and 16% of men reported symptoms of common mental disorder (CMD) (OR 1.52, 95% CI 1.11-2.08). Women were less likely to report mental health-related stigmatization (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.53-0.87), negative relationship impact from deployment (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.49-0.98) and subjective unit cohesion (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.53-0.90). Help-seeking for emotional problems was similar by gender (OR 1.22, 95% CI 0.84-1.77). Overall, outcomes were minimally impacted by level of combat exposure.
Although women experienced more CMD symptoms, PTSD symptoms were similar by gender. Subject to confirmation of the study findings, women may not require enhanced mental healthcare during deployment for exposure-based conditions such as PTSD when undertaking the ground close combat role.
在国际上，女性即将与男性同事一起承担战斗任务。这一政策变化的心理影响在很大程度上尚不清楚。
探讨军事女性参与战斗对其心理健康的影响。
本研究于 2009 年至 2014 年期间在伊拉克和阿富汗进行了四次研究，采用自我报告的、被试间的问卷调查方式，共收集了 4139 名军人的数据。对男性和女性军人在部署期间的心理健康状况、污名化、部署经历、亲密关系影响、家庭支持程度感知、单位凝聚力、领导力和寻求帮助等方面进行了比较。比较结果按照战斗暴露水平进行分层，同时对研究样本进行了比较。使用调整了社会人口统计学、心理健康和军事因素的逻辑回归来检验结果。
总体而言，4.1%的女性和 4.3%的男性报告患有创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）（比值比（OR）为 1.31，95%置信区间（95%CI）为 0.70-2.46）；22%的女性和 16%的男性报告患有常见精神障碍（CMD）（OR 为 1.52，95%CI 为 1.11-2.08）。与男性相比，女性更不容易报告心理健康相关的污名化（OR 为 0.68，95%CI 为 0.53-0.87）、因部署而导致的负面关系影响（OR 为 0.69，95%CI 为 0.49-0.98）和主观单位凝聚力（OR 为 0.69，95%CI 为 0.53-0.90）。寻求情感问题的帮助在性别之间相似（OR 为 1.22，95%CI 为 0.84-1.77）。总的来说，战斗暴露水平对结果的影响较小。
尽管女性经历了更多的 CMD 症状，但男女 PTSD 症状相似。在确认研究结果的前提下，当女性从事地面近距离战斗角色时，可能不需要为 PTSD 等基于暴露的情况提供增强的部署期间心理健康护理。
