Military Sexual Trauma
in the Context of Veterans’ Life
Experiences
Alina Surís, PhD1,2; Ryan Holliday, MA1; Julie C. Weitlauf, PhD3,4;
Carol S. North, MD, MPE1,2; and the Veteran Safety Initiative Writing Collaborative
1Veterans Affairs North Texas Health Care System, Dallas, TX; 2Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center,
Dallas, TX; 3Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA; 4Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences,
Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA
Click here to listen to Dr Surís speak on this topic.
OVERVIEW
Military sexual trauma (MST) is defined
as “sexual harassment that is threatening in character or physical assault of a
sexual nature that occurred while the
victim was in the military” by U.S. Public Law #102-585 of the Veterans Health
Care Act of 1992. MST is not a disorder,
but an experience. Although MST causes
distress in almost everyone exposed to
it, most people who experience MST do not develop psychiatric disorders.1 Both men and women
can experience MST. However, as MST is more
prevalent in female Veterans, the historical literature on this topic has emphasized the experience
and consequences of MST in women. Recognition
of the salience of MST in the lives of both male
and female Veterans is important. More recent literature, focused upon the needs of male Veterans
who have experienced MST, is developing.
Military sexual trauma has been increasingly
recognized in the last 2 decades. A corresponding proliferation of MST research has accompanied the recognition of this important problem.
Medical and mental health problems are well
Alina Surís, PhD
known to be associated with MST; this
literature has emphasized the negative
impact of MST on mental and physical health.1-4 These problems occur in
a broader longitudinal context that has
not been well articulated in existing research.5-7 For many Veterans who have
experienced MST, this broader context
includes a lifelong journey of difficulties beginning with early childhood and
family background problems that continue through
adolescence and into military service and well beyond its completion. It would thus be shortsighted
to start and end the conceptualization of this experience with entry into and completion of military
service respectively. A myopic focus on exposure to
sexual trauma in the military in isolation from the
longitudinal history of associated problems will undoubtedly overlook an important broader context
of trauma exposure that is important to the effective provision of care for these Veterans.
The purpose of this article is to briefly review current knowledge of MST and place it in its broader
psychosocial context. Relevant knowledge to be presented about MST in this article will include pre-