TY - JOUR
T1 - Suicide Ideation in Female Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma
T2 - The Trauma Source Matters
AU - Blais, Rebecca K.
AU - Monteith, Lindsey L.
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding for this study was provided to Rebecca K. Blais by the American Psychological Association—Division 19 (Society for Military Psychology). Funders were not involved in study design. This material is also based upon work supported in part by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Rocky Mountain MIRECC. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views or policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the US Government. The Institutional Review Board at Utah State University approved all study procedures.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 The American Association of Suicidology
PY - 2019/6
Y1 - 2019/6
N2 - Female veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma (MST) are at elevated suicide risk, yet knowledge is limited regarding correlates of suicide ideation (SI) in this population. MST is associated with a higher risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) relative to other trauma types; however, no studies have examined whether experiencing SI differs based on the source of PTSD symptoms (MST-related, non–MST-related). Female service members/veterans (SM/Vs; n = 311) who screened positive for MST and reported exposure to a Criterion A event completed an online survey assessing self-reported demographics, PTSD, depression, the source of their PTSD symptoms, and SI. Ninety-one (29.3%) reported experiencing current SI, and 223 (71.7%) identified MST as the source of their current PTSD symptoms. Participants who identified MST as the source of their PTSD symptoms were over two times more likely to report SI, compared to those who described non–MST-related events as the source of their PTSD symptoms. Compared to those who reported the source of their PTSD symptoms as combat-/deployment-related, those who identified MST as the source were at least three times as likely to report current SI. Results underscore the importance of efforts to address MST-related PTSD symptoms when working with female SM/Vs.
AB - Female veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma (MST) are at elevated suicide risk, yet knowledge is limited regarding correlates of suicide ideation (SI) in this population. MST is associated with a higher risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) relative to other trauma types; however, no studies have examined whether experiencing SI differs based on the source of PTSD symptoms (MST-related, non–MST-related). Female service members/veterans (SM/Vs; n = 311) who screened positive for MST and reported exposure to a Criterion A event completed an online survey assessing self-reported demographics, PTSD, depression, the source of their PTSD symptoms, and SI. Ninety-one (29.3%) reported experiencing current SI, and 223 (71.7%) identified MST as the source of their current PTSD symptoms. Participants who identified MST as the source of their PTSD symptoms were over two times more likely to report SI, compared to those who described non–MST-related events as the source of their PTSD symptoms. Compared to those who reported the source of their PTSD symptoms as combat-/deployment-related, those who identified MST as the source were at least three times as likely to report current SI. Results underscore the importance of efforts to address MST-related PTSD symptoms when working with female SM/Vs.
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U2 - 10.1111/sltb.12464
DO - 10.1111/sltb.12464
M3 - Article
C2 - 29676496
AN - SCOPUS:85066977688
SN - 0363-0234
VL - 49
SP - 643
EP - 652
JO - Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior
JF - Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior
IS - 3
ER -