Title of Article: Military Sexual Trauma among US Servicewomen during Deployment: A Qualitative study
Date of article: February 2014
Source (Please attach copy of article): Burns, B., Grindlay, K., Holt, K., Manski, R., & Grossman, D. (2014). Military sexual trauma among US servicewomen during deployment: A qualitative study. American Journal of Public Health, 104(2), 345-349. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1499845673?accountid=12387
ARTICLE SUMMARY:
In the surveys they have referenced in the article, it displays military sexual trauma increases among women during and after military deployment of unwanted sexual contact in recent years. The authors have recruited and conducted of twenty-two US servicewomen telephone interviews from May 2011 to January 2012 to participate a qualitative study with or without their MST experiences. They asked the participants questions regarding about MST during deployment and other factors which are disturbing their reporting and accessing to services against the perpetrators. The issues of sexism, high stress levels, and failed military leadership contributing factors which put these servicewomen in jeopardy of MST. Some of the interview women said that servicewomen do not report MST due to lack of support from peers, unreliable confidentiality, stigma, and other barriers. The interviewees feel more comfortable opening to medical care services after deployment in the United States that grips with sexual assault cases than throughout deployment around the world. The participants have suggested to improving the MST services: by increasing awareness, prosecution, investigation, cultural shift, and independence service providers. The interviewees recognized that Military se...
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...on sexual assault is not a top priority issue to the American public today.
Personal Observations/Reactions to Reading:
My personal reaction is I praise these women interviewees for participating in the study to discover new information and data of what transpires of sexual assault among women in the military that has been going for decades. It shows how the justice system concerning with sexual assault is broken and needs to hold the perpetrators more accountable that performs these hideous sexual criminal acts. I do acknowledge my United States New York senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, for proposing Military Justice Improvement Act to support the survivors of sexual assault and receiving the justice they deserved. I do hope the US servicewomen confront the obstacles they face against military sexual assault without fear and bring justice in full force.
The common story from victims who report being raped, according to a Military Rape Crisis Center worker, is that they were “met with disbelief and skepticism, blamed for the crime, and disposed of one way or another,” (Kitfield). Until the military stops re-victimizing the victims it will never be able to completely eradicate rape from the ranks.
Women are often victims in war in several circumstances. One of the victimizations The more extreme victimization of women occurs through gender violence while in service as a soldier. In the United States, the film The Invisible War recognizes that over one fifth of serving women experienced sexual assault and there is nearly no justice system to combat this. One man had raped several women in the service, but still was able to receive congressional medal of honors for his actions and bravery (The Invisible War).
Ode, Kim. "Sexual Trauma: Women Vets' Secret War." ProQuest, 18 Dec. 2010. Web. 20 Mar. 2012.
Military Sexual Trauma, also known as MST. What is it and why is it important? MST refers to psychological trauma resulting from a sexual assault or repeated, threatening harassment experienced during military service (pg. 3). Now, let us take a moment and think about the relevance of this subject? When we think of our women in combat, what do we see? We see strong and courteous females. But have we ever thought about what could be lurking underneath all that armor?
A study published in 1989 by Leslie L. Feinauer explored the sexual functioning of female CSA survivors who thought themselves to be adjusted to the sexual trauma and compared it to survivors who did not identify as being adjusted to it. Fifty-seven non clinical w...
Victim issues gradually moved back into the mainstream of the justice system and led to the creation of a new system Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH). Within this program, sexual harassment and sexual assault were viewed in the same form, but today we know they are indeed two separate entities. This training was conducted annually to bring awareness; however, it was still in the reactive stage. On September 11, 2001, the US military has been on high alert with their main focus on the War on Terrorism losing sight this program due to heavy deployment. Approximately 1.64 million US troops have deployed for either Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) Afghanistan or Operation Iraq Freedom (OIF) to Iraq. Sexual assault and sexual harassment increase dramatically during this period. According to Miller (2014), rape during conflict displays how widespread rape and pillaging has remained a strong driving force in warfare because of invisibility. Miller (2014) state another interesting statement that I do not necessarily agree with but it possess some amount of truth. He stated “rape in wartime identifies women paramilitary insurgents and revolutionaries who were raped or sexually assaulted prior to execution because their service in combat usurped patriarchal hierarchy and social order” (p.
Our soldiers not only risked life and limb for our country while serving in the Vietnam War, but they continue to suffer immensely. Americans as well as Vietnamese troops and civilians suffered great losses when it comes to casualties. Witnessing first-hand the pain and death of strangers and allies, isn’t something one is likely to forget. Post-Traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been one of the many repercussions of witnessing these gruesome events (Mental Health America). Veterans, their families, and the government have come together in combat in attempts to address the detrimental effects of PTSD.
Our country has been continuously at war since September 11, 2001. This marks the longest period of war since the inception of the United States. This period of war has become known as the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). There are an estimated 2.5 million GWOT veterans today. Although American war casualties have decreased in numbers, we still have a very high number of Americans serving on the battle front. As of December 2016, there are about 2.3 million military personnel between the active duty, reserve, and National Guard elements worldwide that make up the United States military. Of those troops, there are about 200,000 stationed overseas. We currently have troops in more countries worldwide than we have ever had in the past. That list of countries does not include the 28,000 troops that we have in unknown or secret locations (Department of Defense, 2017). These numbers are just a drop in the bucket compared to the 22.3 million veterans living in the United States (Veteran’s Affairs, 2016).
The purpose of this essay is to discuss the issue of rape and sexual assault in the military. The number of attacks for rape and sexual assault in the military are at an all-time high. Women have recently been allowed to fight on the front line. While this may be a huge achievement for women-kind, for this woman, it is a very scary thought. I am a junior at Texas Academy of Biomedical Sciences; a school geared towards students wishing to enter the medical field. I may be forced to join the military one day if a war breaks out and women are needed to protect the country. I would be happy to serve my country if I did not have to be scared of my fellow soldiers. Rape and sexual assault are major issues in the military and have been for many years without much effort to decrease the attacks. I am suggesting that unless the rape and sexual assault issue is fixed, the amount of people joining the military, specifically the women, will decrease greatly.
There are many well established risk factors for experiencing sexual assault in the military. They range from low rank, female gender, active component service to premilitary sexual assault, however what is the direct effect of the military leaderships role in prevention of sexual assault? This study took a survey of 1337 army and air force servicewomen from March 2010 to December 2011, cataloging a variety of responses, but paying close attention to leadership behaviors. Questions asked about leadership attitudes to sexually suggestive remarks in the workplace, taking reports of sexual assault seriously, concern for ethical behavior, curtailment of sexual activities in living quarters, and lack of support for personnel seeking mental health
After speaking out about MST to their sergeants, often they are discharged and told that they are not eligible for benefits within the VA system. This combined with abuse, PTSD, dehumanizing culture of women in the military, and lack of outreach for female veterans, it is easy to understand their “roughness”.
In the armed forces, it is men who are in positions of political and administrative authority that are characterized by hegemonic masculinity and symbols of masculinity that work to express and reinforce divisions along lines of gender. Murdoch and Nichol (1995) conducted a questionnaire concerning women’s experience with sexual harassment in the military to a sample of 333 female veterans who had served in all branches of the United States military (Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force). Their results demonstrated that domestic violence and a history of sexual harassment while in the military was common. Forty percent of respondents 50 years or older and 90% of women under the age of 50 reported a history of sexual harassment. Results also demonstrated that 18% of the younger respondents reported said they had promotions or transfers blocked when they refused superior officers request for sexual favor. A range of types of sexual harassment by coworkers, supervisors, and superior or commander officer were reported including being offered favorable assignments or promotions for
Women who serve in the military face different challenges than men do in the military that other people are not aware of. Elmer Davis was a news reporter, author, and the Director of the United States Office of War Information during World War II. Davis states that, “This nation will remain the land of the free, only so long as it is the home of the brave” (Davis n.p.). Women in the military risk their lives every day but are taken advantage of and discriminated against because of their gender. Military women experience military sexual traumas (MST) and are at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which affects them mentally. The military impacts the lives of the women in combat and it affects the lives of their families. Military
Notwithstanding, sexual assault not increasing because of the draft, sexual assault is a rising trend. Since 2006, sexual assaults have increased sixty-four percent in the U.S Army and those numbers only reflect the cases which are reported (Burk, 2006, p.241). And the worst part is, that even under such circumstances, women have poor access to the justice system. This is yet another example of the lack of equality. Martha Burks (2016) also states that the biggest reason why there is little justice for these cases is because most females who are sexually assaulted must follow a chain of command and report to their commanding officers. Their commanding officer has the discretion to seek criminal justice and whether, the offenses stay on record.
For decades, the United States Armed Forces have fought a war against sexual harassment and sexual assault which has threatened the integrity and morale among comrades. The army has developed different programs to educate and train leaders in order to assist each individual in a decent and fair way. It is the duty of each member to attend trainings as a method of learning to prevent future crimes and possible outcomes. It is important to understand how alcohol and controlled substance abuse are the main factor in must of cases. Readers may learn the purpose of the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program, review the fictional case, analyze several scenarios, and create their own conclusions.