Special forces (SF) are elite, highly trained soldiers who engage in frequent, often unconventional warfare operations. CA soldiers tend to be at high risk for posttraumatic stress reactions, suicidality, and other mental health problems relative to other military occupations. Soldiers with a combat arms (CA) occupation (e.g., infantry, airborne) have the highest likelihood of combat exposure, including frequent contact with enemy forces and increased risk of death and injury.
A meta-analysis found that suicidal outcomes were more strongly associated with particular combat experiences (e.g., killing, exposure to death) than with deployment in general, suggesting that occupations characterized by direct combat exposure may have a higher suicide risk than other occupations. Deployment experiences vary substantially depending on a soldier’s military occupation. Research on military suicide has often emphasized the importance of deployment history, with mixed results.
Although the Army has implemented a variety of screening and prevention programs, identifying soldiers at risk of suicide remains a significant challenge. Army soldiers increased substantially during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with the rates of suicide death more than doubling from 2001 (9/100,000) through 2009 (22/100,000) and surpassing the adjusted civilian rate in 2008.
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