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Combat-related traumatic experiences can impact numerous aspects of life, including one’s mental and physical health. Coping has been identified as one possible mitigating factor. In addition to general coping, religious coping might be particularly relevant for coping with combat trauma, given that a veteran’s religious framework can serve as an interpretive lens for such stressors. Consequently, treatment models that focus on improving coping skills, via increased use of adaptive and decreased use of maladaptive coping strategies, might provide an enhanced quality of life. Thus, we investigated the potential unique effects of coping on quality of life for veterans in residential treatment for combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This prospective study included 279 veterans with PTSD who were seeking treatment at a residential facility after minimal or no improvement through standard outpatient treatments. General and religious coping were both uniquely related to various facets of subjective quality of life, both cross-sectionally and over time. Specifically, religious coping was found to be one of the most robust predictors of quality of life, with positive religious coping being associated with greater quality of life, and negative religious coping being associated with decreased quality of life. Findings suggest that clinicians treating those with severe combat-related PTSD should address the entire range of coping options, and that treatments should focus on both general and religious coping strategies as part of a comprehensive protocol.

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