Table 1.
Sample characteristics
| Younger Veterans (n = 446) Weighted M (SD) or n (Weighted %) |
Older Veterans (n = 3,623) Weighted M (SD) or n (Weighted %) |
Statistical Comparison | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | |||
| Age | 33.9 (4.2) | 65.7 (12.8) | t(4,067) = −51.94, p < .001, d = 3.33 |
| Male | 332 (74.4%) | 3,339 (92.2%) | χ2(1) = 141.33, p < .001 |
| Race (% White) | 295 (66.4%) | 2,881 (79.5%) | χ2(1) = 40.13, p < .001 |
| Marital Status (% Married) | 239 (71.6%) | 2,593 (53.7%) | χ2(1) = 51.05, p < .001 |
| Educational Attainment | 122 (27.4%) Highschool or less 123 (27.6%) Some College 66 (14.7%) Associates 98 (21.9%) Bachelors 24 (5.5%) Masters 12 (2.8%) Professional |
1,120 (30.9%) Highschool or less 868 (23.9%) Some College 441 (12.2%) Associates 654 (17.2%) Bachelors 443 (12.2%) Masters 127 (3.5%) Professional |
χ2(6) = 33.40, p < .001 |
| Currently Covered by VA Healthcare |
188 (42.2%) |
1,151 (31.8%) |
χ2(1) = 19.25, p < .001 |
| Military Service | |||
| Years of Service | 4.0 (1.3) | 4.4 (1.9) | t(4,067) = −5.04, p < .001, d = −0.29 |
| % Drafted | 3 (0.7%) | 442 (12.2%) | χ2(1) = 10.81, p = .001 |
| Deployment Frequency | 1.6 (0.9) | 4.6 (26.9) | t(1,398) = −1.65, p = .01, d = −0.16 |
| Combat Exposure | 230 (51.7%) | 1190 (32.9%) | χ2(1) = 61.36, p < .001 |
| Conflicts Serveda |
198 (86.8%) OEF/OIF/OND 20 (8.7%) Other Conflicts |
20 (1.7%) World War II 59 (5.0%) Korean War 592 (50.2%) Vietnam 248 (21.0%) Persian Gulf 277 (23.5%) OEF/OIF/OND 124 (10.5%) Other Conflicts |
– |
| Adverse Events | |||
| Suicide Attempt | 61 (13.9%) | 97 (2.7%) | χ2(1) = 130.07, p < .001 |
| Number of Attemptsb | 1.9 (0.9) | 2.1 (2.1) | t(147) = −0.73, p = .47, d = −0.13 |
| Age of Most Recent Attemptb | 24.9 (5.4) | 31.4 (14.2) | t(151) = −3.36, p = .001, d = −0.61 |
| Homelessness | 100 (22.5%) | 315 (8.7%) | χ2(1) = 81.76, p < .001 |
| Total Duration of Homelessnessc | 2.4 (2.0) | 3.1 (4.8) | t(215) = −1.01, p = .31, d = −0.20 |
| Years from Service to Homelessnessc | 3.2 (3.8) | 9.1 (11.1) | t(303) = −3.82, p < .001, d = −0.71 |
| Utilized VA Homelessness Servicesc | 30 (30.1%) | 65 (21.0%) | χ2(1) = 4.10, p = .04 |
| Arrest | 161 (36.3%) | 1134 (31.4%) | χ2(1) = 4.23, p = .04 |
| Number of Arrestsd |
1.8 (1.3) |
2.3 (5.2) |
t(1238) = −1.33, p = .18, d = −0.15 |
| Personality Characteristics | |||
| Grit | 3.5 (0.7) | 3.8 (0.6) | t(4,031) = −9.74, p < .001, d = −0.46 |
| Mindfulness | 4.3 (1.3) | 5.1 (1.1) | t(4,061) = −15.39, p < .001, d = −0.72 |
| Resilience | 37.0 (7.8) | 39.3 (6.7) | t(4,045) = −6.75, p < .001, d = −0.32 |
| Impulsiveness | 16.9 (4.2) | 14.44 (4.0) | t(4,049) = 11.97, p < .001, d = 0.59 |
| Hostility |
4.1 (5.1) |
1.5 (2.9) |
t(4,063) = 16.38, p < .001, d = 0.64 |
| Adverse Childhood Experiences |
2.3 (2.3) |
1.4 (1.9) |
t(4,056) = 9.36, p < .001, d = 0.44 |
| Military Specific Experiences | |||
| Perceived Effect of Military Experience | 1.3 (1.7) | 2.1 (1.3) | t(4,046) = −11.28, p < .001, d = −0.51 |
| Military Sexual Trauma | 0.2 (0.4) | 0.1 (0.2) | t(4,053) = 8.66, p < .001, d = 0.38 |
| Moral Injurya |
21.8 (10.0) |
17.5 (9.8) |
t(1,395) = 6.09, p = .21, d = 0.44 |
| Post-Military Experiences | |||
| Community Integration | 3.7 (1.9) | 4.4 (1.8) | t(4,054) = −4.67, p = .01, d = −0.39 |
| Social Support Received | 17.2 (5.3) | 18.7 (5.1) | t(4,051) = −5.85, p = .33, d = −0.29 |
| Psychosocial Functioning Difficulties | 1.4 (1.2) | 0.6 (0.9) | t(3,771) = −17.48, p < .001, d = 0.78 |
aFor Veterans reporting any combat exposure.
bFor Veterans reporting any prior suicide attempt.
cFor Veterans reporting any prior homelessness.
dFor Veterans reporting any prior arrest.