Abstract
Objective
Despite concerns about increased sexual harassment and assault after the 2013 legislation
repealing the ban on women in combat, little research has examined military factors
that could prevent sexual harassment and assault during deployment. This study examined
whether unit support, which reflects the quality of service members' relationships
within their unit, protects against sexual harassment and assault during deployment.
Methods
Participants were 1,674 Ohio Army National Guard service members who reported at least
one deployment during a telephone survey conducted in 2008 and 2009. Participants
completed measures of sexual harassment/assault, unit support, and psychosocial support.
Logistic regression was used to model odds of sexual harassment/assault.
Results
Approximately 13.2% of men (n = 198) and 43.5% of women (n = 74) reported sexual harassment, and 1.1% of men (n = 17) and 18.8% of women (n = 32) reported sexual assault during their most recent deployment. Greater unit support
was associated with decreased odds of sexual harassment and assault.
Conclusions
A substantial proportion of men and women reported sexual harassment/assault. Greater
unit support was associated with diminished odds of sexual harassment/assault during
deployment. Programming designed to improve unit cohesion has the potential to reduce
sexual harassment and assault.
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Women's Health IssuesAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Sexual harassment and PTSD: Is sexual harassment a diagnosable trauma?.Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2002; 15: 69-75
- Relations between the underlying dimensions of PTSD and major depression using an epidemiological survey of deployed Ohio National Guard soldiers.Journal of Affective Disorders. 2013; 144: 106-111https://doi.org/10.1016/j/jad.2013.06.013
- PTSD, life events, and unit cohesion in U.S. soldiers: Baseline findings from the Neurocognition Deployment Health Study.Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2007; 20: 495-503https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.20234
Bumiller, E. & Shanker, T. (2013, January 24). Pentagon is set to lift combat ban for women. Available: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/us/pentagon-says-it-is-lifting-ban-on-women-in-combat.html?_r=0.
- PTSD comorbidity and suicidal ideation associated with PTSD within the Ohio Army National Guard.Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. 2011; 72: 1072-1078https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.11m06956
- Participation rates in epidemiologic studies.Annals of Epidemiology. 2007; 17: 643-653https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2007.03.013
- Cigarette smoking and subsequent risk of suicidal ideation among National Guard Soldiers.Journal of Affective Disorders. 2012; 145: 111-114https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2012.05.003
- Smoking is a predictor of depression onset among National Guard soldiers.Psychiatry Research. 2013; 206: 321-323https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2012.11.025
- Potentially modifiable pre-, peri-, and postdeployment characteristics associated with deployment-related posttraumatic stress disorder among Ohio Army National Guard soldiers.Annals of Epidemiology. 2012; 22: 71-78https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2011.11.003
- Sexual harassment experiences and harmful alcohol use in a military sample: Differences in gender and the mediating role of depression.Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. 2008; 69: 348-351
- Military morale, welfare, and recreation programs and nonappropriated fund instrumentalities. (Army Regulation 215–1).Department of the Army, Washington, DC2010
- Military sexual trauma in men: A review of reported rates.Journal of Trauma & Dissociation. 2011; 12: 244-260https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2011.542612
Jordan, B. (2013, May 17). Obama: Sexual assault threatens national security. Available: http://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/05/17/obama-sexual-assault-threatens-national-security.html.
- Manual for the Deployment Risk and Resilience Inventory (DRRI): A collection of measures for studying deployment-related experiences in military veterans.National Center for PTSD, Boston2003
- Deployment Risk and Resilience Inventory: A collection of measures for studying deployment-related experiences of military personnel and veterans.Military Psychology. 2006; 18: 89https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327876mp1802_1
- Combat deployment is associated with sexual harassment or sexual assault in a large, female military cohort.Women's Health Issues. 2013; 23: 215-223https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2013.05.002
- Coincident posttraumatic stress disorder and depression predict alcohol abuse during and after deployment among Army National Guard soldiers.Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 2012; 124: 193-199https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2011.12.027
- Posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and HIV risk behavior Among Ohio Army National Guard soldiers.Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2013; 26: 64-70https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.21777
Mulrine, A. (2013, January 25). Women in combat units: Could it reduce sexual assault in the military? Available: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2013/0125/Women-in-combat-units-Could-it-reduce-sexual-assault-in-the-military.
- 2012 Workplace and gender relations survey of reserve component members (Note No.2013-002).Defense Manpower Data Center, Arlington, VA2013
- 2008 Gender relations survey of reserve component members (DMDC Report No. 2008-043).Defense Manpower Data Center, Arlington, VA2009
- Sexual harassment, cohesion, and combat readiness in US Army Support Units.Armed Forces and Society. 1998; 24: 221-244https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X9702400202
- The impact of race and rank on the sexual harassment of Black and White men in the US military.Psychology of Men and Masculinity. 2012; 13: 256-263https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024606
- Sexual harassment and assault experienced by reservists during military service: Prevalence and health correlates.Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development. 2008; 45: 409-420https://doi.org/10.1682/JRRD.2007.06.0088
Trotter, J. K. (2013, January). Highest-ranking military officer ties combat ban on women to sexual assault. Available: http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2013/01/highest-ranking-military-officer-says-combat-ban-women-tied-sexual-assault/61386/
- Deployment stressors, gender, and mental health outcomes among Gulf War I veterans.Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2005; 18: 115-127https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.20018
- Sexual violence and mental health symptoms among National Guard and Reserve soldiers.Journal of General Internal Medicine. 2014; 29: 104-109
- Sexual harassment and assault as predictors of PTSD symptomatology among US female Persian Gulf War military personnel.Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 1998; 13: 40-57https://doi.org/10.1177/088626098013001003
Biography
Dr. Kate Walsh, PhD, is a clinical psychologist completing a fellowship in substance use epidemiology at Columbia University. Her work focuses on the intersection of trauma exposure, particularly sexual violence, psychopathology, and substance use disorders in military and civilian populations.
Biography
Dr. Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH, a physician and epidemiologist, is Chair of the Department of Epidemiology at Columbia University. His work focuses on causes of brain disorders, particularly mood-anxiety and substance use disorders, and he has an interest in consequences of trauma.
Biography
Magdalena Cerdá, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University. Her research focuses on lifecourse influences on substance use onset and continuity, new drivers and forms of illegal substance use, and neighborhood causes and mental health consequences of violence.
Biography
Dr. Catherine Richards, MPH, is an epidemiologist at Columbia University where she is manager for the Global Research Analytics for Population Health (GRAPH) Program and lead data visualization designer for the GRAPH website.
Biography
Dr. Israel Liberzon, MD, is a Professor Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan. His work centers on emotions, stress and stress related disorders like PTSD, particularly in the regulation and dysregulation of stress response systems.
Biography
Dr. Marijo B. Tamburrino, MD, is a psychiatrist at the University of Toledo. Her work is in the areas of posttraumatic stress disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder.
Biography
Dr. Joseph Calabrese, MD, is a psychiatrist at Case Western Reserve University. His work focuses on the phenomenology and treatment of bipolar disorder, and he also studies mental health and functioning among National Guard personnel.
Biography
Dr. Karestan C. Koenen, PhD, is Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University. She uses a developmental approach to examine the interplay of genetic and environmental factors in the etiology of stress-related mental disorders, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression.
Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
May 29,
2014
Received in revised form:
May 22,
2014
Received:
November 25,
2013
Footnotes
The authors acknowledge the following funding sources: T32DA031099, W81XWH-07-1-0409, MH082729, W81XWH-08-2-0204. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. The first author had full access to all the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Identification
Copyright
© 2014 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
