Suicidal ideation in veterans enrolled in evidence-based psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder.

Suicidal ideation (SI) is a highly prevalent public health issue in the veteran population and is increasingly common in veterans who are diagnosed with other mental health conditions, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2020). The present study has an initial aim of examining changes in SI over treatment, and it is hypothesized that SI will decrease across PTSD treatments. A second aim is to examine the association of SI status with PTSD symptoms across treatment, and it is hypothesized that PTSD symptomatology will decrease at similar rates over the course of treatment for those who did and did not endorse SI at pretreatment. Participants included 717 (86.3% male) veterans who participated in outpatient treatment within a Veterans Affairs Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (VA PTSD) specialty clinic between July 2014 and December 2017. Descriptive analyses found that 37.2% of veterans endorsed SI at pretreatment, while 18.6% endorsed SI at posttreatment. The relationship between pre- and posttreatment SI was significant, χ²(1, N = 247) = 23.77, p < .001. A significant proportion of veterans who endorsed SI at pretreatment no longer endorsed SI at posttreatment (64.7%). There were no differences in changes in PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) scores across treatment for those with and without SI at pretreatment. While those who endorsed SI at pretreatment had higher PCL-5 scores throughout treatment, they experienced a similar rate of improvement in symptoms as those without SI at pretreatment. This finding suggests that the presence of SI does not reduce the effectiveness of PTSD treatment. Limitations include the use of a single-item measure of SI, lack of adequate power to detect difference among treatments, and a cross-sectional design. Clinical and research implications are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Psychometric evaluation of the Brief Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire among treatment-seeking veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Objective: The present study aimed to explore the psychometric properties of the Brief Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire (BEAQ) among veterans seeking treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Given that experiential avoidance (EA) is implicated in the development and maintenance of PTSD, it appears to be a possible clinical target for change across treatment. Method: The BEAQ was administered among two samples of military veterans seeking outpatient (n = 179) and residential (n = 257) treatment for PTSD at a Veterans Affairs specialty clinic. The BEAQ is a 15-item self-report measure intended to assess EA, and additional information regarding its psychometric properties is warranted. Results: Descriptive results of the BEAQ in veteran samples are presented. Confirmatory factor analyses of the BEAQ found poor fit in both samples, indicating the BEAQ is not a unidimensional construct, as has been proposed. Conclusions: Future research should consider whether the current structure of the BEAQ is appropriate for measuring EA in veteran samples. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).