Mental health and educational outcomes among current and former National Guard and Reserve soldiers

Abstract

Objective: This study examined the relationships between mental health and educational outcomes among student service members and veterans (SSM/Vs). Participants: Current/former Reserve and National Guard (R/NG) soldiers who were enrolled in school, college, or university in the past year (n = 130). Data were collected in 2014–2016. Methods: Exact logistic regression models separately examined the impact of anxiety, depression, anger, and PTSD on quitting/flunking in the past year. Final models controlled for sex and deployment status. Results: In final models, anxiety [OR: 1.14; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.05, 1.23; p<.01], anger (OR: 1.12; 95% CI: 1.04, 1.21; p<.01), and PTSD (OR: 1.06; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.10; p<.01) were associated with a higher odds of quitting/flunking school, college or university. Depression was not associated with quitting/flunking. Conclusion: Anxiety, anger, and PTSD are associated with quitting/flunking among SSM/Vs. Interventions tailored to this population that address mental health needs may improve the likelihood of academic success.

Keywords:

• Academic success
• mental health
• veterans

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Boards of the Army Human Research Protections Office, the Office of the Chief, Army Reserve, and the Adjutant General of the National Guard.

Additional information

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health under award number R01DA034072 (GGH) and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under award number UL1TR001412. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.