Seminars at the University of Portsmouth

Wednesday 19th June, 4pm – 6pm

University of Portsmouth, Department of Psychology, King Henry Building, King Henry 1st Street, Portsmouth, PO1 2DY

The health and wellbeing of war veterans: Past research and future plans

Older war veterans can find it difficult to come to terms with war memories in later life due to cognitive, physical, and social changes associated with ageing. Although coping through avoidance can be effective initially, these changes mean it can become harder to avoid and suppress memories, which has implications for wellbeing and quality of life. There are, of course, formal interventions that can be used to reconcile and resolve traumatic memories. However, not all outcomes of war are traumatic and need clinical intervention. It is know that social support can play an important role in reconciling memories throughout life. As such, attention has turned towards establishing an evidence base for the informal support interventions that have existed for some time in the veteran community.

Karen Burnell is a Lecturer at the School of Health Sciences and Social Work, University of Portsmouth.

How can psychology support veterans who have problems as a result of military service?

Although many individuals who have experienced service in the armed forces go on to lead fulfilling and productive lives as civilians, for some there are complications. These can include the after- effects of intense and sometimes harrowing situations and difficulties in readjusting to civilian life in areas such as employment, relationships, accommodation and moderating the use of alcohol. In some instances, veterans fall within the scope of the

criminal justice system. Understanding is not always helped by some of the stereotypes and assumptions that surround this field, some of which are influenced by the media whilst others reflect military culture and can be shared by veterans themselves.

Adrian Needs worked in the HM Prison Service for 14 years before going into academic research and teaching as well as undertaking consultation and asssessment work.

A qualitative study investigating the characteristics of service veterans with alcohol related problems

The current generation of UK military personnel (both serving and ex-serving) are known to have higher rates of heavy drinking than the general population despite alcoholism being identified as incompatible with military service. Evidence from studies of Britain’s armed forces found excessive alcohol consumption to be more common in the UK armed forces than in the general population even after taking age and gender differences into account, with early Service leavers more likely to have adverse outcomes (e.g. suicide, mental health problems) and risk taking behaviours (e.g. heavy alcohol consumption, suicidal thoughts) than longer serving veterans.

Nicholas Murdoch served in the Royal Naval Medical Branch in excess of 27 years before coming into academia and embarking on his research career.

How to book

This is a free event, but you must register to attend. For more information and to register your place, go to www.bps.org.uk/wwb.

For all enquiries please contact Cathy Chaplin, Branch Administrator, at [log in to unmask]

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