Cognitive deficits and psychopathology among former prisoners of war and combat veterans of the Korean conflict

Article Abstract:

American servicemen taken captive during the Korean conflict were subjected to extraordinary stress. Of more than 7,100 war prisoners, approximately 40 percent did not survive their captivity, and one in four has died since release. There have been few attempts to describe the residual emotional and behavioral effects of captivity during the Korean conflict. Interviews and psychological testing with newly released POWs noted apathy to environmental stimuli, apprehensiveness, suspiciousness, perturbation (anxiety), and underlying guilt and hostility as the most frequent psychological symptoms. The POWs tended to isolate themselves from others, suppress their feelings, and to become dependent upon others. A group of 22 POWs and 22 combat veteran survivors of the Korean conflict were compared on measures of problem solving, personality characteristics, mood states, and psychiatric clinical diagnoses by means of a battery of tests and interviews. Although the two groups were similar in background and personal characteristics, they differed in reports of life adjustment problems, complaints of physical distress, ability on cognitive tests (measuring ability to think clearly), objectively measured personality characteristics, and psychiatric diagnosis. The results suggest that the psychiatric symptoms documented more than three decades ago have persisted in severity and chronicity. In addition to problems with cognitive deficits and complaints of bodily discomfort, most common among POW survivors were symptoms of suspiciousness, apprehension, confusions, isolation, detachment from others, and hostility. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Case studies, Behavior, Adjustment disorders, Cognitive dissonance

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Assessment of PTSD and other mental disorders in World War II and Korean conflict POW survivors and combat veterans

Article Abstract:

A structured diagnostic interview including a posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) module reveals that former POW's of the Korean War and World War II suffer from extreme trauma and mental disorders. POW subgroups show greater psychopathology than the combat veterans while a high prevalence of PTSD is found in all subgroups. PTSD also leads to other mental disorders highlighting the lasting impact of POWs and combat experiences on mental health. The severity of POW trauma is measured by a trauma events index, weight loss during captivity and captivity duration.

Research, Post-traumatic stress disorder, Veterans, Prisoners of war

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Psychological assessment of aviators captured in World War II

Article Abstract:

Usage of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and structured interviews for Axis I mental disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder in psychological assessments of 33 World War II aviators, one time prisoners of war (POWs), revealed psychopathology levels as war-related in almost one-third of the sample. Aviator POWs were assessed to be more resilient than their non-aviator counterparts in the War.

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