Predictors of Depression Diagnoses and Undiagnosed Depression Symptoms in United States Female Veterans: Results from a National Survey and Implications for Programming

Background and Purpose: Research suggests that female veterans of the United States military are more likely than their male counterparts to report mental health concerns such as posttraumatic stress, depression and suicidal thoughts. The purpose of this study was to explore the interaction of service era, social support, and beliefs about mental health care utility as they relate to depression in female veterans in hopes of improving health programming for this priority population.

Methods: Secondary analysis of 2012 BRFSS survey data involved logistic regression analysis of a large, nationally-sourced sample of 54,060 veterans, of whom 8.5% were women (n= 4,544). Correlations were found between social support, service era, and treatment stigma variables as they predicted outcome variables of diagnosed and undiagnosed depression. 

Results: Of the nationally-sourced sample of 4,544 female veterans, 25.5% reported a medically-diagnosed depression condition of mild, moderate, or major severity.  Of veterans in the sample who did not already have a depression diagnosis, 12% indicated the presence of symptoms that indicate undiagnosed depression of mild, moderate, or major severity.   

Conclusions and Implications: The findings of this study aided in identifying three demographic and behavioral health predictors of diagnosed depression and one predictor of undiagnosed depression in the female military veteran population that demonstrated both practical and statistical significance.