Gender Differences in Combat-Related Stressors and Their Association With Postdeployment Mental Health in a Nationally Representative Sample of U.S. OEF/OIF Veterans.

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This article entails a study conducted on U.S. OEF/OIF (Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom) service members, with the aim of revealing gender differences in exposure to combat-related stressors, and associated relationships with post-deployment mental health. Because of the evolving nature of modern warfare, and women's changing roles in the war zone, female service officers have experienced unprecedented levels of combat exposure in the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although women are still barred from any direct ground combat in the U.S. military, they normally serve in various positions, which put them at risk for combat exposure. Despite the fact, that other countries have employed women in combat roles, women's exposure to combat in the U.S. is a new phenomenon. As a result, the topic has been widely debated in the popular media.
According to the author, most studies on the deployment experiences and post-deployment health of OEF/OIF veterans do not report gender based analyses. To date, no published study has examined gender-based differences in exposure to different dimensions of combat-associated stress, and their related consequences for post-deployment mental health among the U.S. OEF/OIF veterans. Because of this, the study was worth undertaking. As per the already conducted studies, due to women's exclusion from ground combat positions, there have been higher levels of combat exposure for men. However, these differences seem to be quite modest. For instance, 50% of men and 45% of women in a sample taken from the U.S. OEF/OIF veterans claimed to have encountered some level of combat exposure.
Women's exposure to combat in OEF/OIF creates an opportunity, which should be maximally utilized in order to understand gender differences in the mental health consequences of combat exposure. Prior research has revealed four categories of combat-related stress...