Leora N. Rosen

Psychological and Physical Health Effects of Sexual Assaults and Nonsexual Traumas Among Male and Female United States Army Soldiers

Abstract Lifetime trauma history was assessed in a health study of active duty United States Army soldiers. Five hundred fifty-five male and 573 female soldiers in the sample were asked whether they had ever experienced 14 different potentially traumatic experiences, including sexual assaults, violent stressors to self, and terrifying events that occurred to others and were secondarily traumatic through exposure by gaining information or as a witness to the event. Most soldiers had experienced multiple traumas, and premilitary exposure to events was much more common than exposure to events after entering the military. Global measures of current psychological distress and physical health symptoms were predicted by the lifetime number of sexual assaults and traumas to self. Social support from military unit leaders moderated the relationship between accumulated exposure to traumas and both health measures, whereas unit cohesion was directly associated with fewer mental health problems.

Impact of Childhood Abuse History on Psychological Symptoms Among Male and Female Soldiers in The U.S. Army

The long-term psychological effects of four different types of childhood maltreatment were examined among 1,072 male and 305 female soldiers on active duty in the United States Army. The predictor variables included four subscales from the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ)-(1) physical-emotional abuse, (2) sexual abuse, (3) emotional neglect, and (4) physical neglect. An additional sexual abuse variable based on the four screening questions developed by Finkelhor, Hotaling, Lewis, and Smith (1990) was also included. Outcome was measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory and a dissociation scale developed by Briere and Runtz (1988). MANOVAs were conducted for each outcome measure. Physical-emotional abuse contributed to most of the effects. However, sexual abuse contributed additional significant effects to all of the subscales. In general, males and females showed similar outcomes, but certain gender differences were noted.

The Effects of Peer Group Climate on Intimate Partner Violence among Married Male U.S. Army Soldiers

This study examined the combined impact of individual-level and group-level variables on self-reported intimate partner violence, operationally defined as mild to severe physical aggression on the Modified Conflict Tactics Scale, among married male U.S. Army soldiers. The sample comprised 713 servicemen from 27 companies stationed at an Army post in the Alaskan interior. Group-level variables were based on individual reports on various dimensions of group climate aggregated at the company level. Contextual analyses were conducted using a variety of regression approaches. Individual-level predictor variables significantly associated with intimate partner violence included race, symptoms of depression, poor marital adjustment, alcohol problems, and a history of childhood abuse. Group-level predictor variables significantly associated with intimate partner violence included lower leadership support (vertical cohesion), a culture of hyper-masculinity (operationally defined as increased group disrespect), and lower support for spouses.

Cohesion and Readiness in Gender-Integrated Combat Service Support Units: The Impact of Acceptance of Women and Gender Ratio

Cohesion, combat readiness and acceptance of women were examined among male and female junior enlisted soldiers and male noncommissioned officers (NCOs) in 19 combat service support companies. The proportion of junior enlisted females in each company was negatively correlated with mean cohesion and readiness scores for junior enlisted males. The proportion of NCO females was significantly correlated with the proportion of soldiers who said they did not expect to deploy with their units, which in turn was negatively correlated with cohesion for male NCOs. For junior enlisted males, results indicated that cohesion and combat readiness increased with increased acceptance of women, but decreased as the proportion of females in the unit increased. Furthermore, acceptance of women decreased as the proportion of females in the unit increased. The results are interpreted in the light of two competing hypotheses regarding minority proportional representation-the tokenism hypothesis and the minority-proportion discrimination hypothesis.

Seasonal variations in mood and behavior in the general population: a factor-analytic approach.

In a mailed survey conducted at four centers--Nashua, NH; New York, NY; Washington, DC; and Sarasota, FL--1,671 respondents provided information on monthly variations in 10 behavioral categories representing extremes in the areas of mood, socializing, appetite, weight gain/loss, and sleep length. A 10-factor solution revealed the following factors: (1) a winter weight gain factor; (2) a winter depression factor; (3) a winter hypersomnia factor; (4) a summer weight gain factor; (5) a summer hypersomnia factor; (6) a summer depression factor; (7) a winter socializing factor; (8) a winter weight loss factor; (9) a fall depression factor; and (10) a possibly mixed factor. Factors consistent with winter seasonal affective disorder were positively correlated with latitude, while those consistent with summer seasonal affective disorder were negatively correlated with latitude.

Long-Term Effects of Childhood Maltreatment History on Gender-Related Personality Characteristics.

OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that different types of gender-related personality attributes are associated with a past history of different types of childhood maltreatment. METHOD A survey was administered to 1,060 male soldiers and 305 female soldiers in the U.S. Army. The survey instrument included the Extended Personal Attributes Questionnaire (EPAQ) which is a self-assessment instrument of personality characteristics associated with gender, and includes measures of positive masculinity (self-assertive/instrumental traits), positive femininity (expressive/interpersonal traits), negative masculinity (hyper masculine/macho traits), and negative femininity (subordination of self to others). The survey instrument also included the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), which contains scales measuring sexual abuse, physical-emotional abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect, and four questions on childhood sexual abuse developed for a national survey of U.S. adults. RESULTS Negative masculinity was predicted by male gender, younger age, and childhood physical-emotional abuse. Negative femininity was predicted by physical-emotional abuse and sexual abuse. The relationship to sexual abuse was mainly evident for males. Positive femininity was positively correlated with sexual abuse for females and negatively correlated with sexual abuse for males. Positive masculinity was negatively correlated with emotional neglect for males but not for females. Positive femininity was negatively correlated with emotional neglect for both genders. CONCLUSIONS Childhood abuse was associated with the presence of negative gender-related attributes; childhood neglect was associated with absence of positive gender-related attributes. Childhood physical abuse was associated with negative masculine attributes in both genders. Childhood sexual abuse was associated with positive feminine attributes in females, and negative feminine attributes in males. The finding for females is counterintuitive, and is discussed in the light of the clinical literature on certain types of adaptation to incest.

Outcomes of Custody and Visitation Petitions When Fathers Are Restrained by Protection Orders The Case of the New York Family Courts

A random sample of custody and visitation petitions filed in New York City Family Courts in 1995 was used to examine outcomes of mothers’ Order of Protection (OP) Petitions in relation to parents’ custody and visitation petitions. Fathers restrained by OPs were more likely to secure visitation orders (64%) than not. In contrast, 80.8% of fathers’ custody petitions were dismissed when they were restrained by OPs. Fathers’ custody petitions were most likely to be ordered when mothers’ OP petitions were withdrawn. Mothers were most likely to secure custody when their OP petitions were ordered or withdrawn. Courts rarely denied petitions. Those that did not result in court orders were either withdrawn by the petitioner or dismissed by the court (most likely because of failure of the petitioner to appear in court). This pattern has negative implications for battered women who may be vulnerable to pressure or threats from abusive expartners.

Intimate partner violence among married male U.S. Army soldiers: ethnicity as a factor in self-reported perpetration and victimization.

Correlates of self-reported intimate partner violence (IPV) were examined among 488 married male U.S. Army soldiers. Study results were examined within the framework of Johnson’s (1995) typology, which proposes that there are two main types of IPV, common couple violence and intimate terrorism. We predicted that poor marital adjustment would be associated with minor violence, hypothesized to be indicative of common couple violence. We also predicted that psychological and behavioral characteristics associated with perpetrators of IPV would be more strongly correlated with severe inflicted aggression—a pattern hypothesized to be indicative of intimate terrorism. The results, based on a multivariate analysis of covariance, generally supported our hypotheses. Furthermore, the higher levels of IPV reported by Black respondents in this study were associated with the pattern hypothesized to be characteristic of common couple violence.

Predictors of Tolerance of Sexual Harassment Among Male U.S. Army Soldiers

Tolerance of sexual harassment in the Army was examined in relation to three variables indicative of negative attitudes toward women among male soldiers. The first was a personality variable, negative masculinity, associated with narcissistic and aggressive characteristics; the second was a variable measuring hostility toward women; the third was a measure of acceptance of women as mens equals in the Army. In a MANOVA analysis, all three variables were significant predictors of tolerance of sexual harassment in the Army. Hostility toward women was the strongest predictor, followed by negative masculinity, and acceptance of women, which was negatively correlated with the other variables.

Childhood maltreatment history as a risk factor for sexual harassment among U.S. Army soldiers.

Four different types of childhood maltreatment were examined as predictors of unwanted sexual experiences and acknowledged sexual harassment among male and female active duty soldiers in the United States Army. Predictor variables included childhood sexual abuse, physical-emotional abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect. Three types of unwanted sexual experiences in the workplace were examined as outcome variables: gender harassment, unwanted sexual attention, and coercion. Both sexual and physical-emotional abuse during childhood were found to be predictors of unwanted sexual experiences and of acknowledged sexual harassment in the workplace. Among female soldiers, the most severe type of unwanted experience—coercion—was predicted only by childhood physical-emotional abuse. Among male soldiers childhood sexual abuse was the strongest predictor of coercion. A greater variety of types of childhood maltreatment predicted sexual harassment outcomes for male soldiers. Childhood maltreatment and adult sexual harassment were predictors of psychological well-being for soldiers of both genders.