Research Department, Combat Stress, Leatherhead, UK.
Kings Centre for Military Health Research, King's College London, London, UK.
BMJ Mil Health. 2023 Oct;169(5):419-424. doi: 10.1136/bmjmilitary-2021-001948. Epub 2021 Oct 25.
Despite making up about 11% of the UK military, there remains limited investigation on the impact of adversity women experience during their service in the UK military. Military adversity can result in a range of well-being difficulties that may persist following transition out of military. The present study therefore examined the prevalence and correlates of different types of military adversity (defined as sexual harassment, sexual assault, emotional bullying and physical assault) within a community sample of UK women veterans.
Participants were recruited from a UK charity supporting women veterans. 750 women veterans completed an online survey collecting information on sociodemographic and military factors, military adversity, as well as mental health and well-being difficulties. Associations between variables were explored using multivariate logistic regressions.
The findings indicate a high prevalence of military adversity (22.5% sexual harassment, 5.1% sexual assault, 22.7% emotional bullying and 3.3% physical assault). Younger women, those who held an officer rank during service and those who reported having a combat or combat support role during service were most at risk of military adversity. All types of adversity were significantly associated with probable post-traumatic stress disorder. Sexual harassment was additionally significantly associated with physical somatisation; sexual assault with alcohol difficulties; and emotional bullying with common mental health difficulties, low social support and loneliness.
This study indicates that UK women veterans are at risk of a range of adverse experiences during military service and provides evidence of the impact of such adversities on mental health and well-being. Further research is required to better understand these relationships.
尽管英国军队中女性占比约为 11%，但针对女性在英国军队服役期间所经历的逆境影响，相关研究仍十分有限。逆境可能会导致一系列的幸福感问题，而这些问题在退伍后仍可能持续存在。因此，本研究调查了英国女性退伍军人社区样本中不同类型的军事逆境（定义为性骚扰、性侵犯、情感欺凌和身体攻击）的流行率和相关因素。
参与者从英国一家支持女性退伍军人的慈善机构招募。750 名女性退伍军人完成了一项在线调查，收集了社会人口学和军事因素、军事逆境以及心理健康和幸福感困难方面的信息。使用多变量逻辑回归探讨了变量之间的关联。
研究结果表明，军事逆境的发生率很高（22.5%性骚扰，5.1%性侵犯，22.7%情感欺凌，3.3%身体攻击）。年轻女性、服役期间担任军官职务的女性以及报告在服役期间担任战斗或战斗支援角色的女性面临军事逆境的风险最高。所有类型的逆境都与创伤后应激障碍的可能性显著相关。性骚扰与身体躯体化显著相关；性侵犯与酒精问题显著相关；情感欺凌与常见心理健康问题、社会支持度低和孤独感显著相关。
本研究表明，英国女性退伍军人在服兵役期间面临一系列不良经历的风险，并提供了这些逆境对心理健康和幸福感影响的证据。需要进一步研究以更好地理解这些关系。
