Effects of Combat Deployment on Risky and Self-Destructive Behavior Among Active Duty Military Personnel

Abstract

Effects of deployment on high-risk and self-destructive behaviors were examined. Active duty military personnel (N = 2,116) described their deployment experiences and their participation in risky recreational activities, unprotected sex, illegal drug use, self-injurious behavior, and suicide attempts during three time frames (civilian, military pre-deployment, and military post-deployment). Personnel that had not deployed, relative to those that had deployed, were more likely to report high-risk behavior as civilians, but not after entering the military. Deployment was associated with increases in risky recreational behavior, illegal drug use, and self-injurious behavior. However, this effect was restricted to personnel with a prior history of engaging in high-risk behavior; among those with no prior history, effects of deployment on high-risk behavior were negligible.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA561535

Entities

People

  • Cynthia J Thomsen
  • Joel S. Milner
  • Mandy M. Rabenhorst
  • Stephanie K. Mcwhorter
  • Valerie A. Stander

Organizations

  • Naval Health Research Center

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Active Duty
  • Anxiety Disorders
  • Demography
  • Deployment
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Enlisted Personnel
  • Health Services
  • Human Behavior
  • Iraqi-War
  • Medical Personnel
  • Mental Disorders
  • Military Personnel
  • Psychiatry
  • Psychology
  • Recreation
  • Regression Analysis
  • Traumatic Stress Disorder

Fields of Study

  • Psychology

Readers

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