The purpose of the present research was to identify rates of posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms in soldiers returning from war. During reintegration training, U.S. Army soldiers, who recently returned from a 12-month deployment to either Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom, n = 2,275) or Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom, n = 1,814), completed study materials. Surveys assessed self-reported levels of depression, posttraumatic stress, and life satisfaction. Results indicated that approximately 44% of soldiers who volunteered to participate self-reported clinically significant levels of depressive symptoms, posttraumatic stress symptoms, or both. Although assessing symptoms and not disorders, these results suggest a potentially high rate of mental health concerns in soldiers immediately after returning from a combat zone. Further research should examine the utility of broad scale interventions.

The Internet Process Addiction Test (IPAT) was created to screen for potential addictive behaviors that could be facilitated by the internet. The IPAT was created with the mindset that the term “Internet addiction” is structurally problematic, as the Internet is simply the medium that one uses to access various addictive processes. The role of the internet in facilitating addictions, however, cannot be minimized. A new screening tool that effectively directed researchers and clinicians to the specific processes facilitated by the internet would therefore be useful. This study shows that the Internet Process Addiction Test (IPAT) demonstrates good validity and reliability. Four addictive processes were effectively screened for with the IPAT: Online video game playing, online social networking, online sexual activity, and web surfing. Implications for further research and limitations of the study are discussed.

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