A comparison of Vietnam veterans, Vietnam-era veterans, and non-veterans in terms of political alienation, purpose in life, and life stress

Abstract

The purpose of this inquiry was to determine if Vietnam Veterans, VNE veterans, and non-veteran college students could be found to differ along the dimensions of life stress, purpose in life, and political alienation. The investigation was conducted during the Fall semster of 1975 at Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas. Subjects for the study were 219 college students, randomly selected and enrolled on a full time basis at Texas A&M University. Participation was on a voluntary basis with the following totals and percentages reflecting the three student groups: a) Vietnam Veterans, 41 - 21.5%: b) VNE veterans, 67 - 28.3%; and c) Non-veteran students, 111 - 50.2%. All students were administered the Social Readjustment Rating Questionnaire, the Purpose-In-Life Test, and the Political Alienation Scale. Both veteran groups filled out a personal data questionnaire which included information pertinent to their military service record. Non-veteran students were asked to include only their age, academic classification, and academic major. Comparisons for mean differences between groups were made using a one-way analysis of variance. Where significant differences were found to exist, these were analyzed by Scheffe's tests and by an omega-squared test. The .01 level was required for statistical significance. The major findings were: 1. Vietnam and VNE veterans obtained higher mean preference scores for discontentment/cynicism with politics than did their nonveteran fellow students. 2. Approximately six percent of the total variance in the dependent variable (mean score on the PAS) could be accounted for by the total variance in the dependent variable (student group), with a resulting correlation of .241. 3. No significant differences were found to exist in an overall measure of mean life stress scores between the three groups. 4. Vietnam and VNE veterans obtained significantly higher means scores on the PIL than did their non-veteran counterparts. Vietnam Veterans also obtained significantly higher mean scores on the PIL than did the VNE veteran sample. 5. A combination of approximately .20 was obtained with group status and mean score on the Purpose-In-Life Test. Approximately four per cent of the variance in the dependent variable could be attributed to the independent variable..