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Virtual interviewing may encourage soldiers to disclose mental health problems
Active-duty and former service members reported more mental health symptoms when interviewed by a virtual human than on the official or an anonymized Post-Deployment Health Assessment.
“Not only are service members more likely to have PTSD than civilians but, as a result of the perceived stigma surrounding the condition, they are particularly reluctant to report symptoms,” Gale M. Lucas, PhD, of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, and colleagues wrote. “The reluctance of service members in the United States Military to report PTSD symptoms is especially intensified when they are screened for mental health symptoms using the official administration of the Post-Deployment Health Assessment (PDHA) since this information becomes documented in their military health records.”
To determine factors associated with reporting psychological symptoms by service members and whether virtual human interviewers could increase disclosure of mental health symptoms, researchers utilized automated virtual humans to interview active-duty service members that had just returned from a year-long deployment in Afghanistan.
Results indicated that service members reported more symptoms during a conversation with a virtual human interviewer than on the official PDHA or an anonymized PDHA.
A second, larger sample of active-duty and former service members indicated similar effects that approached statistical significance, according to researchers.
“These kinds of technologies could provide soldiers a safe way to get feedback about their risks for post-traumatic stress disorder,” Lucas said in a press release. “By receiving anonymous feedback from a virtual human interviewer that they are at risk for PTSD, they could be encouraged to seek help without having their symptoms flagged on their military record.” – by Amanda Oldt
Disclosures: The authors report no relevant financial disclosures.