The military histories of 80 Viet Nam era veterans diagnosed as
schizophrenic by DSM-III criteria were examined in relation to measures of
dangerous and violent acts. Thirty of the subjects had been in Viet Nam,
and 20 of these had been in combat. A stepwise multiple regression analysis
indicated that high scores on several inpatient and outpatient measures of
violence and dangerousness were significantly related to combat experience
in Viet Nam and particularly to either killing or witnessing killings of
the enemy. It appears that violence-related activities learned in Viet Nam
continue to influence the behavior of schizophrenic patients.Abstract Teaser