Risk-Taking and Suicidal Behaviors among Army National Guard Soldiers

Abstract

A major concern of military leaders, health scientists, and policymakers has been increased suicides among U.S. military personnel. Few studies have examined how risk-taking conveys suicide risk. The present study examined survey data (12,612 soldiers in 180 company-sized units) obtained from an under-studied military population, the Army National Guard (ARNG). One-fifth to one-third of the soldiers reported risk-taking behaviors, such as alcohol misuses, unauthorized work absences, criminal behaviors, and unsafe sex practices. Risk-taking behaviors were simultaneously related to suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts, namely: unauthorized work absences (Odds-Ratio = 6.38, 95% CI 4.06-10.02), alcohol misuses (6.12, 4.56-8.20), such as driving under the influence (DUI), committing illegal acts while drinking, etc., and criminal behaviors (3.00, 2.05-4.39) to suicide thoughts; unauthorized work absences (7.63, 4.28-13.59), alcohol misuses (4.36, 2.73-6.96), and criminal behaviors (4.30, 2.60-7.11) to suicide plans; and unauthorized work absences (41.40, 19.40-88.38) and criminal behaviors (6.10, 2.95-12.60), and unsafe sex practices (2.37, 1.29-4.35) to suicide attempts. Risk-taking behaviors that showed stronger associations with suicide risk are interpreted as likely reducing inhibitions against violence and self-harm, namely, criminal behaviors and unauthorized work absences with alcohol misuses. Several practical implications of risk-taking findings are offered for suicide prevention.