Disrupting posttrauma networks: Identifying candidate intervention targets to improve military veterans' mental...

Trauma exposure is widespread within the U.S. and around the world. Although researchers have examined the mental health and functional challenges that can result from these experiences, knowledge regarding which symptoms and domains of functioning are most central in maintaining poor mental health and functioning is limited. Using data from The Veterans Metrics Initiative (TVMI) study, we conducted a series of network analyses to identify factors that are most central to mental health (depression, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], anxiety, and suicidal ideation) and functional challenges (health, social, vocational, and financial) experienced by U.S. military veterans (N = 2150). Depression symptoms and health functioning were most strongly linked to other factors in the network of associations among and between mental health and functioning domains, with similar associations observed for those with minimal versus elevated symptom levels. Collectively, these findings suggest that interventions targeting depression, alongside efforts to increase engagement in health-promoting behaviors, may have greatest potential to disrupt these networks. Future research is needed to confirm the causal impact that these factors have on other aspects of mental health and functioning, and to evaluate whether interventions that target these factors can improve the mental health and well-being of military veterans and other trauma-exposed populations.