“A woman in a man’s world”: A pilot qualitative study of challenges faced by women veterans during and after deployment
APA Citation:
Brown, E. K., Guthrie, K. M., Stange, M., & Creech, S. (2021). 'A woman in a man’s world’: A pilot qualitative study of challenges faced by women veterans during and after deployment. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 22(2), 202-219. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2020.1869068
Focus:
Veterans
Trauma
Branch of Service:
Army
Navy
Air Force
Multiple branches
Military Affiliation:
Veteran
Guard
Reserve
Active Duty
Subject Affiliation:
Veteran
Guard/Reserve member
Active duty service member
Population:
Adulthood (18 yrs & older)
Young adulthood (18 - 29 yrs)
Thirties (30 - 39 yrs)
Middle age (40 - 64 yrs)
Aged (65 yrs & older)
Methodology:
Qualitative Study
Authors:
Brown, E. K., Guthrie, K. M., Stange, Mia, Creech, Suzannah
Abstract:
Women Veterans face gender-specific challenges to military life and post-deployment readjustment, including gender-based discrimination and military sexual trauma. Despite recent military initiatives to address these issues, women still experience unique challenges during military service. This study examines spontaneous comments about gender-specific challenges to military life that were made by participants in a qualitative study of women’s transitions to civilian life after deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan. Methods: Women Veterans who were enrolled at a New England VA hospital and who had deployed to the U.S. conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan participated in this qualitative study (N = 22). Interview queries and initial coding structure were developed through an extensive literature review. An iterative coding process generated additional themes identified in the data. For this project, codes regarding self-initiated reports of gender-specific challenges that fell outside the scope of the study’s initial interview agenda were reviewed for thematic analysis. Results: The following three self-initiated themes emerged among 12 respondents: 1) gender-based scrutiny and discrimination; 2) the military’s inadequate position and response to military sexual trauma; and 3) disadvantages to women service members living in a male-dominated environment. Across all three themes emerged a sub-theme in which women perceived their unique needs to be inconvenient and/or disregarded. Respondents described how these challenges disrupted their lives during and after military service. Conclusion: Results imply gender-specific challenges and military sexual trauma remain critical concerns for women Veterans well after deployment had ended, and that improved policy may have long-term health implications.
Publisher/Sponsoring Organization:
Taylor & Francis
Publication Type:
Article
Author Affiliation:
VISN17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans, EKB
Epidemiology Program, Louisiana State University School of Public Health, EKB
Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, KMG
Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, The Miriam Hospital, KMG
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, MS
VISN17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans, SC Dell Medical School of the University of Texas at Austin, SC
Keywords:
gender-based discrimination, military sexual trauma, transition, women veterans
Sponsors:
This work was supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs [grant number V1CDA2011- 11]; and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development [grant number K24HD062645-04]