engleski

Personal Well-Being in One-Hundred-Percent-Disabled Croatian Homeland War Veterans

Belligerency and combat exposure create conditions that can cause physical and psychological injuries. A considerable number of veterans suffered battle wounds, such as amputations and spinal cord injuries, which would inevitably have permanent consequences on their everyday life functioning and might damage their well-being. Research shows that veterans who suffer from high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) are likely to have poorer psychosocial functioning and lower life satisfaction and well-being. Personal well-being has been recognized as an important indicator of psychological functioning and positive health. The present study sought to investigate the personal well-being of Croatian Homeland War veterans with one-hundred-percent disability, 20 years after the war. We aimed to determine the role of current war-related PTSS and various components of physical and mental health status (physical functioning, limitations due to physical health, pain, general health, vitality, emotional well-being, limitations due to emotional problems, social functioning) in their well-being. The study participants were (N=130) male members of the Association of 100% Disabled War Veterans, whose average age was 52 years. The participants completed the International Well-being Index, the PTSD Checklist–Military version, and the SF-36 Health Survey. A hierarchical regression analysis suggested that the PTSS do not have a unique explanatory value in the presence of some variables of mental health, that is, fatigue and emotional well-being – presumably indicative of the mediating effect of emotional state (e.g., depression) on the relationship between PTSS and well-being observed in other studies. Emotional well-being, vitality, and general health perception were significant predictors of the personal well-being of one-hundred-percent disabled veterans and explained more than 50% of the reliable variance, which is comparable to findings in studies with a similar objective. These findings inform us of the need for focusing our endeavors on improving the vigor and emotional well-being of the veterans as a means of enhancing their well-being.

100% Disabled Croatian Homeland War Veterans, Personal Well-being, Physical Health, Mental Health, Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms

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