Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology Vol.6 Issue.2

Doi:10.35365/ctjpp.24.2.05

RESEARCH ARTICLE / ARAŞTIRMA YAZISI

Trauma Exposure and Hopelessness as Predictors of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Depression among War Veterans in South-East Nigeria

Güneydoğu Nijerya’daki Savaş Gazileri Arasında Travma Sonrası Stres Bozukluğu ve Depresyonun Belirleyicileri Olarak Travmaya Maruz Kalma ve Umutsuzluk

Sunday Ejikeme Nwoye1, Gabriel E. Nweke2

Abstract:

The study investigated trauma exposure and hopelessness as predictors of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression among war veterans in South-Eastern Nigeria. The research design used the ex post facto method purposively for a sample of 470 retired military veterans who were involved in a conflict at different times. The sample consisted of 240 men and 230 females who responded to four standardized instruments. The sample for the study was determined through Taro Yamen’s statistical method for a multinomial or heterogeneous population. The results show that exposure to trauma significantly predicted PTSD among military veterans in Southeast Nigeria (F (1,468) =38.88; P<0.01). However, trauma exposure did not significantly predict the development of depression disorder among veterans in Southeast Nigeria (F (1,468) =0.302; P=0.583). Hopelessness was found to be a statistically significant predictor of PTSD (F (1,468) =10.87; P<0.01). However, it did not significantly predict the development of depression disorder among veterans (F (1,468) =0.239; P=0.625) with R=0.023 and R2=0.001. The findings generally support most of the empirical evidence available in the literature. Based on the results of the study, the military organization and the Nigerian government must implement a strategic healthcare initiative to build military veteran rehabilitation health centers in each state. In these centers, both those serving in the military and retired veterans would be able to access routine psychological evaluation and treatment to ensure that they are in a good state of health and well-being during and after their engagement on the battlefield.

Keywords: Co-morbidity, Depression, Exposure to Trauma, Hopelessness, Nigeria, Post-traumatic stress disorder, Veterans

1PhD Student., Girne American University, Kyrenia, TRN Cyprus, [email protected], Orcid id:  0000-0002-1150-2159

2Assist. Prof., Girne American University, Kyrenia, TRN Cayprus, [email protected], Orcid id: ‪ 0000-0003-2067-4494

Address of Correspondence/Yazışma Adresi: Sunday Ejikeme Nwoye, Girne American University, Academy of Applied Social Sciences, Kyrenia, Mersin 10, Turkey, e-mail: [email protected]

Date of Received/Geliş Tarihi: 24.10.2023, Date of Revision/Düzeltme Tarihi: 17.01.2024, Date of Acceptance/Kabul Tarihi: 04.05.2024, Date of Online Publication/Çevirimiçi Yayın Tarihi: 26.06.2024

Citing/Referans Gösterimi: Nwoye, S.E. & Nweke, G.E. (2024). Trauma Exposure and Hopelessness as Predictors of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Depression among War Veterans in South-East Nigeria. Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology, 6(2): 147-155

© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Cyprus Mental Health Institute / Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry and Psychology (www.ktppdergisi.com). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/