Gender Differences in the Rehospitalization of Substance Abusers among Homeless Military Veterans

Abstract

This two-year follow-up study of military veterans treated in an inpatient drug treatment program was designed to examine any gender differences in predictors of rehospitalization for substance abuse or other psychiatric disorders. A survey was administered to 310 women and 315 men, involving several ecological predictors that rarely if ever had been investigated. For example, Cox's proportional hazard model indicated that childhood and current sexual and physical abuses were stronger predictors among women, whereas degree of substance abuse, cognitive disorders, aggression, and disadvantageous peer associations were stronger predictors among men. Social service implications of those findings were presented.