Experiences of ethnic minority personnel in the armed forces: A systematic review
Abstract: Ethnic minority personnel experience greater levels of harassment and discrimination than their nonminority counterparts. This review demonstrates the impact of these experiences on ethnic minority personnel in the armed forces. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, PsycInfo, PsycArticles, EBSCO, and Web of Science. Sixteen articles that discussed Black, Asian, and ethnic minority armed forces personnel were analyzed. Much of what is known about ethnic minority experiences of serving in the armed forces is based on ethnic minorities in the U.S. Armed Forces. The available literature shows that ethnic minority serving personnel and Veterans experience greater disadvantage than their native counterparts, both during and after service. Ethnic minority personnel reported poorer health than white personnel and fear of criticism from their ethnic minority community on disclosure of traumatic experiences. Ethnic minority personnel were also more likely to access formal mental health services yet less likely to engage in treatment, particularly women. Three themes were identified: cultural identity, health status and health utilization, and trauma and discrimination. Research reports often do not highlight individual ethnic minority groups, thus making it difficult to draw conclusions about them. Future research should consider evaluating the psychosocial context influencing functioning among different ethnic minority groups and should also explore the benefits of serving in the armed forces.
Abstract: Disordered eating is a prevalent and relevant health concern that remains understudied among U.S. military veterans. Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) is a newly recognized feeding and eating disorder characterized by overly restrictive eating due to (a) picky eating, (b) lack of appetite, and (c) fear of aversive consequences related to eating. The Nine-Item ARFID Screen (NIAS) is a recently developed ARFID screening tool with initial validation studies demonstrating psychometric support. However, the psychometric properties of the NIAS have not been investigated in a veteran sample. To advance our understanding of ARFID screening tools that may be appropriate for use in veterans, the present study examined the factor structure of the NIAS using survey data from a large national sample of recently separated veterans (N = 1,486). Measurement invariance across key subgroups was tested in addition to exploring differential associations between the NIAS and related constructs. Results suggested that a three-factor model provided an excellent fit of the data and demonstrated scalar invariance across self-identified men and women, race and ethnicity, and sexual and gender minority (SGM) identity. Some subgroups had higher latent means on the picky eating (women, SGM, non-Hispanic Black), appetite (women, SGM), and fear (women) factors. The NIAS had some overlap with another measure of disordered eating and was moderately correlated with psychosocial impairment and mental health. Overall, the NIAS may be a useful screening tool for ARFID in veterans, given support for the three proposed subscales and equivalence across diverse identities.