NCJ Number
187612
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 46 Issue: 2 Dated: March 2001 Pages: 309-316
Date Published
March 2001
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study explores psychiatric factors linked with aggression related to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Vietnam combat veterans.
Abstract
Following the presentation of four case studies, this paper discusses various aspects of PTSD factors linked to violent behavior. The first factor discussed is flashback-associated violence. Flashbacks are dissociative experiences that commonly encompass cognitive abnormalities, intense emotional responses, and abnormal visual perceptions. Flashback experiences can lead to serious loss of reality testing that in turn may lead to violence against others. A second factor is violence associated with sleep disturbance. On rare occasions a person may experience sleep-related violence in which purposeful, aggressive behaviors are evident in individuals who do not appear to suffer from PTSD. Violence associated with PTSD may be due to dissociative behavior that arises from sleep states rather than phenomena consistent with the sleep state itself. PTSD also often co-occurs with disturbances of mood and affect, including mood swings, hostility, and depression. Of special relevance to violence are the intense feelings of anger and mood liability commonly encountered among combat Vietnam veterans with PTSD. Another factor is combat addiction violence, which involves aggression in which the affected person seeks to re-experience thoughts, feelings, and actions related to previous combat experiences. After discussing these factors in PTSD-related violence among Vietnam combat veterans, this paper focuses on associated general and psychiatric legal issues, as well as future directions for the development of a comprehensive classification of violent behaviors associated with PTSD that has resulted from combat exposure. 67 references