Table 1. Characteristics of General Purpose Forces infantrymen, Ranger Qualified infantrymen, and Special Forces personnel.
| Characteristic | General Purpose Forces | Ranger Qualified infantrymen | Special Forces personnel |
|---|---|---|---|
| n = 5,361 | n = 308 | n = 593 | |
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | |
| Demographics | |||
| Race and ethnicity* | |||
| Hispanic | 373 (7.0) | 18 (5.8) | 22 (3.7) |
| White, non-Hispanic | 4,434 (82.7) | 255 (82.8) | 528 (89.0) |
| Othera | 554 (10.3) | 35 (11.4) | 43 (7.3) |
| Marital status* | |||
| Not married | 2,017 (37.6) | 82 (26.6) | 163 (27.5) |
| Married | 3,344 (62.4) | 226 (73.4) | 430 (72.5) |
| Education* | |||
| High school degree or less | 1,453 (27.1) | 28 (9.1) | 37 (6.2) |
| Some college/associate | 2,484 (46.3) | 105 (34.1) | 233 (39.3) |
| Bachelor’s or higher | 1,424 (26.6) | 175 (56.8) | 323 (54.5) |
| Age*, mean, SD | 30.2, 7.9 | 32.6, 8.0 | 34.2, 8.9 |
| Panel*,b | |||
| 1 | 1,479 (27.6) | 148 (48.1) | 290 (48.9) |
| 2 | 711 (13.3) | 55 (17.9) | 64 (10.8) |
| 3 | 1,153 (21.5) | 36 (11.7) | 95 (16.0) |
| 4 | 2,018 (37.6) | 69 (22.4) | 144 (24.3) |
| Military service | |||
| Component* | |||
| Active duty | 3,212 (59.9) | 260 (84.4) | 478 (80.6) |
| Reserves | 2,149 (40.1) | 48 (15.6) | 115 (19.4) |
| Rank* | |||
| Enlisted | 4,385 (81.8) | 159 (51.6) | 374 (63.1) |
| Officer | 976 (18.2) | 149 (48.4) | 219 (36.9) |
| Combat severity*,c (No. of combat items endorsed) | |||
| Low (0–6) | 2,119 (39.5) | 101 (32.8) | 251 (42.3) |
| High (7–12) | 3,242 (60.5) | 207 (67.2) | 342 (57.7) |
| Type of combat event | |||
| Fightingd | |||
| No | 769 (14.4) | 35 (11.4) | 88 (14.8) |
| Yes | 4,587 (85.6) | 273 (88.6) | 505 (85.2) |
| Killinge | |||
| No | 3,179 (59.7) | 173 (56.2) | 361 (61.3) |
| Yes | 2,149 (40.3) | 135 (43.8) | 228 (38.7) |
| Threat to oneself*,f | |||
| No | 1,767 (33.0) | 107 (34.7) | 277 (46.8) |
| Yes | 3,586 (67.0) | 201 (65.3) | 315 (53.2) |
| Death/injury of othersg | |||
| No | 694 (13.0) | 30 (9.7) | 62 (10.5) |
| Yes | 4,660 (87.0) | 278 (90.3) | 531 (89.5) |
| Type of killing*,h | |||
| Neither | 3,179 (59.7) | 173 (56.2) | 361 (61.3) |
| Enemy combatant only | 1,672 (31.4) | 103 (33.4) | 199 (33.8) |
| Noncombatant | 477 (9.0) | 32 (10.4) | 29 (4.9) |
| Outcomes | |||
| Mental health disorders*,i | |||
| No | 4,126 (77.1) | 280 (91.8) | 553 (93.4) |
| Yes | 1,227 (22.9) | 25 (8.2) | 39 (6.6) |
| Trouble sleeping*,j | |||
| No | 2,728 (51.0) | 219 (71.6) | 445 (75.3) |
| Yes | 2,622 (49.0) | 87 (28.4) | 146 (24.7) |
| Problem drinking*,k | |||
| No | 4,232 (78.3) | 266 (86.6) | 539 (91.4) |
| Yes | 1,107 (20.7) | 41 (13.4) | 51 (8.6) |
IED, improvised explosive device; PHQ, Patient Health Questionnaire; PTSD, posttraumatic stress disorder.
All covariates were measured at the assessment point.
Note: Column totals may not sum to population total due to exclusions of missing values. Due to nonresponse, the number of missing responses on each outcome variable vary. Sample sizes were as follows: mental health disorders n = 6,250, trouble sleeping n = 6,247, problem drinking n = 6,236.
* p < .05 for chi-square test of independence between each characteristic and occupational specialization.
a “Other” included 64 participants (1.0%) identifying as American Indian, 248 (4.0%) as Asian or Pacific Islander, 280 (4.5%) as Black, non-Hispanic, and 40 (0.7%) as non-Hispanic multiracial.
b This study used four panels of Millennium Cohort Study participants.
c Combat severity is the categorized sum of the number of combat items endorsed from the following list: being attacked or ambushed, receiving small arms fire, clearing/searching buildings, killed an enemy combatant, killed a noncombatant, having an IED explode near you, being wounded or injured, seeing dead bodies, handling human remains, knowing someone injured/killed, seeing Americans injured/killed, or having a unit member injured/killed.
d Fighting includes being attacked or ambushed, receiving small arms fire, or clearing/searching buildings.
e Killing includes being directly responsible for the death of an enemy combatant or a noncombatant.
f Threat to oneself includes having an IED explode near you or being wounded or injured.
g Death/injury of others includes seeing dead bodies, handling human remains, knowing someone injured/killed, seeing Americans injured/killed, or having a unit member injured/killed.
h Type of killing was categorized as “neither,” “enemy combatant only,” and “noncombatant.” Almost all who reported being responsible for the death of a noncombatant also reported being responsible for the death of an enemy combatant.
i Mental health disorders is defined as endorsement of PTSD, depression, panic, or anxiety.
j Trouble sleeping is based on an endorsement of having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.
k Problem drinking is based on endorsement of any of the five PHQ alcohol items.