Imagery and combat stress in Vietnam veterans.

Greater exposure to combat in Vietnam leads to higher levels of Vietnam-linked imagery, as shown by three different measures: a) an experimental task; b) the Impact of Event Scale, a measure of intrusion and avoidance of imagery within the past week; and c) a measure of imagery experienced since return from Vietnam. The results support previous findings from analogue studies and civilian populations concerning the relationship between degree of stress and posttraumatic imagery.