Table 2.
Socio-demographic characteristics of the INF, PARAs and RMCs
| Socio-demographic and pre-deployment variables | INF (n = 572)a | PARAs (n = 202)a | RMCs (n = 275)a | INF versus PARAs | INF versus RMCs | PARAs versus RMCs |
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | P value | P value | P value | |
| Age (years) | 29.9 (29.3–30.4)b | 28.4 (27.5–29.2)b | 30.4 (29.6–31.3)b | <0.05 | NS | <0.001 |
| Educational statusc | ||||||
| No qualifications | 94 (17) | 19 (10) | 18 (7) | NS | <0.001 | NS |
| GCSE or equivalent | 289 (54) | 107 (55) | 129 (48) | |||
| A-levels or equivalent | 100 (19) | 46 (24) | 87 (32) | |||
| Degree | 56 (10) | 22 (11) | 37 (14) | |||
| Rank | ||||||
| Other rank | 140 (25) | 66 (34) | 92 (34) | NS | <0.05 | NS |
| Junior non-commissioned officer | 227 (40) | 72 (37) | 85 (31) | |||
| Senior non-commissioned officer | 132 (23) | 37 (19) | 60 (22) | |||
| Officer | 65 (12) | 22 (11) | 34 (13) | |||
| Had prior deployment experience | 450 (79) | 147 (73) | 211 (78) | NS | NS | NS |
| Time deployed for in past 3 years | ||||||
| ≤6 months | 148 (27) | 67 (34) | 65 (24) | <0.05 | NS | <0.001 |
| 7–12 months | 249 (45) | 92 (34) | 108 (40) | |||
| >12 months | 161 (29) | 38 (19) | 95 (36) | |||
| Medically downgraded | 45 (8) | 9 (5) | 20 (7) | NS | NS | NS |
| Number of childhood adversity factors | ||||||
| 0/1 | 97 (17) | 40 (20) | 57 (21) | NS | <0.001 | <0.05 |
| 2/3 | 146 (26) | 55 (27) | 97 (35) | |||
| 4/5 | 122 (21) | 35 (17) | 67 (24) | |||
| ≥6 | 207 (36) | 72 (36) | 54 (20) |
Numbers (n), percentages (%), means (M) and 95% CIs are displayed together with P values for t-tests and χ2 statistics. NS = not significant.
a
Some categories do not add up to denominators because of missing data.
b
Mean and 95% CI and corresponding t-test.
c
General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSEs) are examinations usually taken at age 16. A-levels are usually taken at age 18 and are required for entry to university.