Military Sexual Trauma

Foubert, J.D. & Masin, R. (in press). Effects of The Men’s Program on U.S. army soldiers’ intentions to commit and willingness to intervene to prevent rape: A pretest posttest study. Violence and Victims

by John Foubert

Non-commissioned male officers in the U.S. Army stationed in Germany were trained to present a one-hour rape... more Non-commissioned male officers in the U.S. Army stationed in Germany were trained to present a one-hour rape prevention workshop, The Men’s Program, to 237 enlisted male soldiers. A comparison group of 244 male soldiers received a briefing focused on reducing the individual’s risk for experiencing sexual assault, discussion of myths and facts about sexual assault, and how to avoid being accused of sexual assault. Participants in The Men’s Program experienced significant change in the predicted direction for bystander willingness to help, bystander efficacy, rape myth acceptance, likelihood of raping, and likelihood of committing sexual assault with low to medium effect sizes. Comparison group participants experienced no effect on these variables except for a significant decline in rape myth acceptance with a very low effect size. Between-group differences pointed to the efficacy of The Men’s Program. Implications of these results for rape prevention programming in the military are discussed.

Veterans, Military Sexual Trauma and PTSD: Rehabilitation Planning Implications

by Janet K. Cater

Journal of Applied Rehabilitation Counseling, Vol. 42, No. 2, Summer 2011

Jerry Leach, MS  Co-author  Currently in press.

Military sexual trauma (MST) can cause mental and physical illness in both men and women.  It can also influence... more Military sexual trauma (MST) can cause mental and physical illness in both men and women.  It can also influence behavior and the ability to work with others.  MST encompasses a range of unwanted sexual attentions ranging from gender harassment to sexual coercion and gang rape.  Sexual assaults in the military continue to rise with an 11% increase reported for fiscal year 2009, including a 16% rise in the Afghanistan and Iraq war zones.  This paper includes (a) a brief overview of MST; (b) how MST affects women female veterans; (c) how MST affects male veterans; (d) the interrelationship of MST, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health problems; (e) MST and its effect on quality of life; (f) current effective MST therapeutic treatments; (g) rehabilitation considerations; and (h) implications for research.