Using Heart Rate to Predict Resilience and Susceptibility to PTSD in Soldiers

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to consider the use of heart rate as a potential indicator for predicting both susceptibility and resilience in Soldiers who have not yet deployed. Previous research shows positive correlations among stress, negative emotions, heart rate, and PTSD in individuals diagnosed with this disorder. Often times, those with PTSD show increased heart rate when exposed to images that replicate a traumatic situation. Based on these findings, we hypothesize that exposing Soldiers without any past history of PTSD to traumatic images prior to deployment will cause the ones most susceptible to PTSD to experience significantly higher heart rates. Those with the lowest heart rates would potentially be more resilient and thus be less likely to return from deployment with PTSD. Heart rate measurement would augment the measures used in the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program and provide a more holistic picture of a Soldier's psychological fitness.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA540988

Entities

People

  • Brian Chung
  • Jonathan Lanier
  • Lolita M. Burrell
  • Michael D. Matthews

Organizations

  • United States Military Academy

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Engineered Resilient Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Anxiety Disorders
  • Cognition
  • Combat Injuries
  • Deployment
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Health Services
  • Human Behavior
  • Military Medicine
  • Nervous System
  • Prisoners Of War
  • Psychiatry
  • Psychology
  • Resilience
  • Social Psychology
  • Therapy
  • Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • United States Military Academy

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

  • Psychological Intervention/Treatment for Stress, Anxiety, PTSD, and Related Emotional and Cognitive Health Symptoms.