The Link between Deployment-Related Injuries and Suicidal Thinking in the Army National Guard: Examining the Role of Perceived Burdensomeness and Hopelessness
Open accessAbstract
OBJECTIVE: In 2020, Army National Guard members demonstrated greater risk of suicide than their military and civilian counterparts. Though literature on deployment-related experiences and suicidal ideation (SI) is mixed, investigations of specific deployment-related experiences (e.g., injuries) may further elucidate the relationship between deployment and suicide risk. Deployment-related injuries, including pain severity and functional impairment, have been linked to increased risk of SI, and correlates like perceived burdensomeness (PB) and hopelessness. The current study sought to examine the cross-sectional relationship between deployment-related injuries, including pain severity and functional impairment, and severity of SI through PB and hopelessness. METHOD: = 2,261) completed validated self-report measures on past-week SI, PB, hopelessness, and single items regarding injury sustained during deployment and associated functional impairment and pain severity. RESULTS: = .1993), functional impairment was related to SI through PB, and pain severity was related to SI through PB. Contrary to hypotheses, hopelessness was not associated with SI when PB was simultaneously considered. CONCLUSIONS: Army National Guard members who develop a sense of PB related to their injury and functional impairment of that injury may be at increased risk for suicidal ideation. Military suicide-prevention efforts may be potentiated through targeting distorted cognitions such as PB and hopelessness, especially in service members who have been injured.
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Affective disorders in combat veterans significantly affect cognitive processing and behavioral responses, reducing quality of life, ability to socialize, and capacity for professional activities.
“This group of psychopathological manifestations significantly affects cognitive processing and behavioral responses, thereby reducing the quality of life of veterans, their ability to socialize, and their capacity to engage in professional activities [7, 8].”
From An individualized approach to the treatment of affective disorders in the comorbidity of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury (2024) · cites this paper as [8]
The Discussion (page not provided) says deployment-related functional impairment may lead to social and occupational difficulties and distorted cognitive perceptions. It does not establish that affective disorders in combat veterans significantly alter cognitive processing and behavior or reduce quality of life; its proposed direction is from injury-related impairment toward those difficulties and perceptions. (LLM, conf=0.78)
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- Authors
- Pardue-Bourgeois, S., Goldberg, S. B., Wyman, M. F., Abbas, M., Flynn, A. W. P., Domínguez, S., & Tucker, R. P.
- Affiliations
- Louisiana State University (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- Corresponding author
- Pardue-Bourgeois, Sarah
- ORCID
- Venue
- Archives of Suicide Research
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2023-10-26
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 1107-1118
- ISSN
- 1381-1118 (ISSN-L)
- 1543-6136
- PMC
- PMC11045658
- OpenAlex
- W4387949469
- Cited by
- 6
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 2
- FWCI
- 1.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Archives of Suicide Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Center for Complementary & Integrative Health of the National Institutes of Health (K23AT010879, IK2 HX003080)
- Dept of Veterans Affairs Health Services Research & Development Service, VA Office of Research & Development
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Occupational Health and Performance
- Keywords
- suicidal ideation, Army National Guard, perceived burdensomeness, hopelessness, pain intensity, functional disability, cognitive distortions
- MeSH terms
- Military Deployment, Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Military Personnel, Pain, Risk Factors, United States, Young Adult, Suicidal Ideation, Hope
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