Open AccessThe Impact of Early Life War Exposure on Mental Health among Older Adults in Northern and Central Vietnam
Author(s) -
Miles O. Kovnick,
Yvette Young,
Nhung Tuyet Tran,
Bussarawan Teerawichitchainan,
Toan Khanh Tran,
Kim Korinek
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of health and social behavior/journal of health and social behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.649
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 2150-6000
pISSN - 0022-1465
DOI - 10.1177/00221465211039239
Subject(s) - mental health , vietnamese , suicidal ideation , vietnam war , psychology , psychological distress , distress , suicide prevention , life course approach , injury prevention , clinical psychology , poison control , psychiatry , gerontology , medicine , developmental psychology , environmental health , political science , linguistics , philosophy , law
Most Vietnamese young adults who experienced the American War were exposed to war-related violence, which can exert a lifelong impact. We analyze survey data collected among northern and central Vietnamese older adults in the 2018 Vietnam Health and Aging Study (N = 2,447) to examine the association between various war traumas, psychological distress, and suicidal ideation. Informed by life course and stress process perspectives, we use structural equation models with multiple mediators to analyze the relationship between mental health outcomes and five types of wartime stress exposure: loss of family and friends, witnessing death, malevolent living conditions, life threat, and moral injury. Our findings reveal enduring mental health impacts of war among survivors. Wartime stress exposure's influence on mental health is mediated by recent comorbidities and stressful life events. Loss of family members, witnessing death, and malevolent living conditions during war are particularly salient risks for psychological distress.