Gender, Position of Authority, and the Risk of Depression and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among a National Sample of U.S. Reserve Component Personnel

Abstract

BackgroundRecent U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have seen dramatic increases in the proportion of women serving and the breadth of their occupational roles. General population studies suggest that women, compared with men, and persons with lower, as compared with higher, social position may be at greater risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. However, these relations remain unclear in military populations. Accordingly, we aimed to estimate the effects of 1) gender, 2) military authority (i.e., rank), and 3) the interaction of gender and military authority on a) risk of most recent deployment-related PTSD and b) risk of depression since most recent deployment. MethodsUsing a nationally representative sample of 1,024 previously deployed Reserve Component personnel surveyed in 2010, we constructed multivariable logistic regression models to estimate effects of interest. ResultsWeighted multivariable logistic regression models demonstrated no statistically significant associations between gender or authority, and either PTSD or depression. Interaction models demonstrated multiplicative statistical interaction between gender and authority for PTSD (beta = −2.37; p = .01), and depression (beta = −1.21; p = .057). Predicted probabilities of PTSD and depression, respectively, were lowest in male officers (0.06, 0.09), followed by male enlisted (0.07, 0.14), female enlisted (0.07, 0.15), and female officers (0.30, 0.25). ConclusionsFemale officers in the Reserve Component may be at greatest risk for PTSD and depression after deployment, relative to their male and enlisted counterparts, and this relation is not explained by deployment trauma exposure. Future studies may fruitfully examine whether social support, family responsibilities peri-deployment, or contradictory class status may explain these findings.