Battlefield functioning and chronic PTSD: associations with perceived self efficacy and causal attribution

This study has two aims: (1) to examine the associations between battlefield functioning and perceived self efficacy (PSE) and attributional style; (2) to examine the unique and cumulative contributions of battlefield functioning, PSE, and attributional style to long term PTSD. The subjects were three groups of Israeli veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur, who differed in their battlefield functioning: 112 combat stress reaction (CSR) casualties, 98 veterans who received medals for bravery, and 189 controls. The subjects filled out a series of questionnaires that assessed PTSD, PCE, attributional style and PTSD, two decades after the war. CSR casualties exhibited the lowest level of PSE, decorated veterans the highest. The three groups also differed in locus of control, with different attribution for failure. Discriminant analysis of PTSD and non-PTSD veterans showed that sociodemographic background, battlefield performance, PSE and attributional style classified 81% of all veterans correctly. The implications of these findings are discussed.