Disclosure of Combat Events by Afghanistan and Iraq War Veterans

Abstract

Previous research shows a somewhat inconsistent relationship between symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and disclosing combat events to others. The current work details the results of two studies of combat event disclosure in veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). In the first study, an Internet sample of OEF/OIF veteran service members (n = 71) completed self-report measures of PTSD symptoms, social support, combat exposure, and whether or not specific combat events had been discussed with another person. In the second study, OEF/OIF veteran service members from the Utah National Guard and Reserves (n = 85) completed the same measures but specified with whom they had discussed each combat event. In both cases, service members reported that they had discussed the majority of combat events with another person. Results from both studies further showed that event-specific disclosures interact with levels of social support in predicting PTSD symptoms. Greater event-specific disclosures were associated with lower symptoms of PTSD, primarily among service members reporting higher levels of social support. These findings suggest the utility of event-specific disclosures as a protective factor against the development of PTSD symptoms, particularly for service members who already have well-established social support.

Keywords:

• military
• disclosure
• combat
• PTSD
• social support

Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the second author's start-up funds while he was at the University of Utah. The authors wish to thank Camila S. Rodrigues and Catherine M. Caska for their assistance with the data collection and management involved in this study, as well as the Utah National Guard Chaplains and the Utah National Guard/Reserve service members and families for their support of this project.