ASOR Call for Submissions - Suicide Prevention, Intervention, and Postvention

While suicide devastates families, communities, and society whenever and wherever it occurs, the effects of suicide in the military touch the institution and its members in potentially deeper and more profound and far-reaching ways. The drivers of suicidal thoughts, attempts, and in the most tragic instances, suicide, are a regular feature of military life and work—deployments, the conduct of war and killing, and intense focus on performance and responsibility under persistent scrutiny.

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Suicide affects society in its entirety, and at times, rates of suicide—both attempts and completed—in the military and the veteran community have been consistent with the same rates among similar demographics in the larger civilian society. Yet, over the past eight years, suicide rates have climbed 30 percent for military members. In 2023, America lost 364 of its active duty military members and 156 of its reserve component members to suicide. A five-year Pentagon study released in May found that between 2014 and 2019, suicides (883) took more military members lives than accidents (814) , and over 8 times more than combat (96). In addition to the emotional toll on members and their families, suicide deeply affects military unit morale, readiness, and recruiting.

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One of the basic tenets of service in the military is the understanding by all that military members and their families are exactly that—members. They are members of a “team of teams,” and the organization is responsible to foster an environment where the members of these teams care for and care with one another. Suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention are thus the responsibility of the military—perhaps its greatest responsibility.

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ASOR is soliciting submissions of research-based articles for an upcoming issue devoted to the challenge of suicide from the perspective of clinicians, researchers, and practitioners in the areas of prevention, intervention, and postvention, civilian and military. What does the data say about where the military is today on this issue? What best practices can be learned from civil society? What socioecological factors impact suicide? Where are ?the military gaps in supporting its members, and where has the military made gains against this tragic fact of military service?

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Draft articles are being accepted through September 1, 2024. Please see https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/ASOR/Submission-Guidelines/ for complete submission information.