Trauma, time, and transformation: A comparative study of immediate and 1-year psychological outcomes in military body handlers.

OBJECTIVE

Personnel assigned to recover and identify human remains following mass violence are exposed to intense occupational trauma, yet longitudinal data on their psychological adaptation remain limited. This study compared an immediate cohort of military reservists' body handlers with a similar cohort 1-year postmission. The two groups served as body handlers following the Hamas's October 7, 2023, mass-casualty attack in southern Israel.

METHOD: Eighty-four reservists were assessed approximately 1 year after mission completion (Cohort 2) and compared with an independent cohort assessed immediately postmission (N = 161; Cohort 1). Measures included posttraumatic stress symptoms (via Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition), posttraumatic growth (PTG via Posttraumatic Growth Inventory), and resilience (10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale). The prevalence of probable posttraumatic stress disorder was calculated using a validated cutoff.

RESULTS

One year postmission, 33.3% of participants met the criteria for probable posttraumatic stress disorder, significantly higher than the 20.5% observed immediately after mission completion. Resilience was associated with lower posttraumatic stress symptoms and higher PTG in Cohort 2 but only with PTG in Cohort 1. Posttraumatic stress symptoms showed a significant curvilinear relationship with PTG among Cohort 2, which differed from the small positive linear association found among Cohort 1.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with the immediate postmission cohort, the 1-year postmission cohort demonstrated a higher prevalence of probable posttraumatic stress disorder. The evolving association between distress and growth suggests that early reports of growth do not necessarily indicate long-term adaptation or even genuine growth. Resilience is associated with better long-term adaptation, not immediate adaptation after a mission. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).