Military Suicide: The Influence of Chain of Command/Leadership on Military Personnel's Psychopathology and Suicide Rates

Date

2022

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Abstract

Military suicide is a national problem, but scholars and policymakers still do not understand it. In the past few years, suicide rates have increased. SurveyMonkey, a recruiting tool, was used to gather information. Participants from all backgrounds and socioeconomic classes were welcome to participate. For this study, I analyzed data from more than 100 active-duty U.S. military members and veterans from different backgrounds. I examined the participants' responses to see if the high rate of suicide in the military might be directly correlated with the chain of command/leadership. I utilized the Moral Injury Symptom Scale - Military Version Short Form (MISS-M-SF), the Endorsed and Anticipated Stigma Survey (EASI), Unit Cohesion, Deployment Risk and Resilience Inventory-2 (DRRI-2), and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research-Leadership Scale (WRAIR-LS), short form. I examined the results to see if there was a direct link between the chain of command/leader and military suicides. Does the chain of command affect military mental health? Is the chain of command why many military people don't seek treatment for suicidal thoughts or attempts? After running a separate Pearson correlation, results show a strong positive correlation between the chain of command/leadership, military psychopathology, and military suicide. It would be advantageous to conduct more research on how military leadership, military psychopathy, and suicide are all linked.

Description

Keywords

Military suicide, Psychopathology, Military leaders, Toxic leaders

Citation

DOI