PSYCHOLOGICAL AND WAR STRESS SYMPTOMS AMONG DEPLOYED AND NON-DEPLOYEDRESERVISTS FOLLOWING THE PERSIAN-GULF-WAR

The present study examined the incidence of war-related psychological distress among Persian Gulf War veterans. A total of 591 Army, Navy, a nd Marine reservists were administered the Mississippi PTSD Scale, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the SCL-90R. Combat-deployed reservist s showed significantly higher levels of psychological symptomatology t han non-deployed reservists, generally corresponding to levels of stre ss exposure. No significant effects were found for race or prior comba t exposure, but significant differences were found between combat-depl oyed male and female reservists. Despite the brevity and the outcome o f the Persian Gulf War, significant symptomatology exists among this p opulation.