(PS4-A10) Cumulative Effects of Sexual Revictimization on Suicide Risk in Military Service Members: Associations with Posttraumatic Cognitions

Background. Suicide is a leading cause of preventable death in US military service members, and suicide risk is elevated among those reporting military sexual trauma (MST). Many MST survivors also report a history of sexual trauma prior to military service, making MST a revictimization experience. Burgeoning studies have documented correlation between sexual revictimization and higher suicide risk in military samples relative to samples reporting a single exposure to sexual trauma. Posttraumatic cognitions (PTCs) are important mechanisms of both dysfunction and recovery after sexual trauma. While negative PTCs contribute to increased suicide risk following MST, there is limited knowledge regarding whether negative PTCs account for the higher suicide risk following sexual revictimization relative to single victimization. The current study assessed negative PTCs as a mechanism of the association between sexual revictimization and heightened suicide risk among service members/veterans (SM/Vs). Methods. Participants were 383 SM/Vs with a history of MST, recruited via Qualtrics. Of these, 340 (88.8%) reported a history of sexual trauma before military service. All measures were completed online. The Suicide Behavior Questionnaire-Revised was used to assess suicide risk. History of sexual trauma before and during military service was evaluated using the Sexual Experiences Survey-Short Form Victimization. Posttraumatic cognitions were assessed by using the Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory. Results. After covarying for gender, age, and marital status, mediation analysis results showed there was a significant indirect effect of more negative PTC on the association between sexual revictimization and higher suicide risk (b=1.63, z=4.79, p< 0.01), suggesting that sexual revictimization is associated with more negative PTCs relative to single exposures, and more negative PTCs are associated with higher suicide risk. Discussion. Changing trauma-related thoughts, which is the underlying mechanism of first-line trauma-focused treatments (e.g., Cognitive Processing Therapy), could reduce suicide risk among survivors of sexual revictimization.