Date of Award

Summer 2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Psychology

Program/Concentration

Psychology

Committee Director

Michelle L. Kelley

Committee Member

James Paulson

Committee Member

Cathy Lau-Barraco

Abstract

Numerous studies have documented the risk for suicide among recent-era veterans with combat experience. Recently, moral injury has emerged as a possible contributor to suicidality in veterans. To that end, no study has approached the combat exposure-moral injury-suicidality link with a focus grounded in positive psychology. Specifically, the present study explored whether positive rumination, or the reflection on positive emotions and moods, may buffer the deleterious effects of potentially traumatic experiences in warzones on moral injury and suicidality. This study was a secondary analysis of 250 current or former U.S. military members (Mage = 33.3 years) who had deployed at least one time as part of their occupational duties. Participants completed an online survey that assessed combat exposure, moral injury, suicidality, and responses to positive affect. Combat exposure, moral injury, and suicidality were all positively associated. In the mediation model, moral injury did not mediate the relationship between combat exposure and suicidality. In the moderated mediation model, positive rumination moderated the indirect effect of combat exposure on suicide via moral injury, as well as all three direct relationships between combat, moral injury, and suicidality. These findings provide much needed insight into the effects of combat on military mental health. Additionally, results suggest positive rumination may serve as a buffer to reduce the associations between combat exposure, moral injury, and suicidality. Implications from the present study may be used to promote awareness of positive affective states and encourage research on positive rumination inducing strategies for combat veterans, at-risk military members, or as prevention strategies for general military populations.

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In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

DOI

10.25777/k9hv-dv18

ISBN

9798384444398

ORCID

0000-0002-3376-8134

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