Mental Health and Resilience: Soldiers' Perceptions about Psychotherapy, Medication, and Barriers to Care in the United States Military

Abstract

Research has reported perceived barriers to care in military populations, but there have not been any studies to date that demonstrate the degree to which subjective barriers translate into lack of utilization. Moreover, studies of mental health service utilization have not examined patient beliefs and perceptions, instead focusing on characteristics such as race, gender, and sociodemographic variables. To our knowledge there have not been any systematic investigations into what soldiers believe about mental health treatment. Results from this study will provide the mental health community with valuable information about 1) Barriers to receiving mental healthcare in symptomatic individuals; 2) The effects those barriers have on health care utilization; 3) Beliefs about mental health and treatment preferences that can inform education and treatment planning efforts; 4) Factors associated with psychological resilience and how those factors affect healthcare utilization. In the past year, a Fort Drum Combat Brigade withdrew from participation immediately prior to our data collection date. Further, a negative incident involving an unrelated research team caused a delay for all research on post. We are re-negotiating our collaboration with Fort Drum and have concurrently established a collaboration with colleagues at Fort Bragg to complete this study. We have applied for a one-year no-cost extension and anticipate this project to be completed by September, 2012.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA559065

Entities

People

  • Steven Southwick

Organizations

  • Yale University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Anxiety Disorders
  • Counseling
  • Depression
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Health
  • Health Care
  • Health Services
  • Medical Personnel
  • Mental Disorders
  • Mental Health
  • Mental Health Services
  • Military Personnel
  • Psychiatry
  • Psychology
  • Psychotic Disorders
  • United States

Fields of Study

  • Medicine
  • Psychology

Readers

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