Measuring psychological stress in primary care military medical clinics.
In this study, the amount of psychological distress reported by soldiers is investigated and measured over time. The soldiers--enlisted and career--were randomly chosen while visiting five different military primary care clinics (for ostensible somatic problems) and administered the General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg and Huxley, 1980). A third of the subjects were given the GHQ a year later. Fifty-two percent showed psychological stress: combat soldiers showed considerably less distress than technical/maintenance and administrative soldiers, and the psychological stress findings remained relatively stable over time. Possible explanations for these findings are discussed.
Maoz
B
B
Psychiatric Division Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel.
Mark
M
M
Rabinowitz
S
S
Antonovsky
H
H
Kotler
M
M
Ribak
J
J
Bleich
A
A
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D010556:Personality Tests; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011602:Psychophysiologic Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D012803:Sick Role; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*