The Mental Health and Well-Being of Women in the UK Armed Forces
PhD Student: Ms Charlotte Woodhead
PhD Supervisors: Dr Stephani Hatch and Dr Nicola Fear
This research project aims to examine the mental health and well-being of female UK Armed Forces personnel. The study uses a mixed methods design. Quantitative analyses use existing data from phase 2 of the ‘Health and Well-being Survey of UK Armed Forces Personnel’, while qualitative data was collected via 41 in-depth semi-structured interviews.
There are three main aims:
-
To estimate the prevalence of specific mental and physical health problems such as PTSD and self-reported somatic symptoms.
-
To examine the relationship between work, family, and interpersonal relationship stressors and physical and psychological health outcomes. Protective factors against poor health outcomes, such as social support and valued social networks will also be investigated.
-
To explore work, family, and interpersonal relationship stressors in detail (e.g. work-family conflict; gender discrimination) and their perceived relationship to health using in-depth qualitative interviews with serving and ex-services women.
Publications:
Woodhead C, Wessely S, Jones N, Fear NT, Hatch S. Impact of exposure to combat during deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan on mental health by gender. Psychological Medicine 2012 doi:10.1017/s00332917110090.