Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans

Potential psychological issues faced by British nuclear test veterans have been under-researched. This study assessed the prevalence of clinically relevant anxiety in British nuclear test veterans and aimed to explore experiences of worry and the broader psychological impact of the British nuclear w...

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Autores principales:	George Collett, William R. Young, Wendy Martin, Rhona M. Anderson
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	radiation anxiety worry British nuclear test veterans GAI-SF qualitative Medicine R
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/fd5b703636824a16a0e1288cf40966e0
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:fd5b703636824a16a0e1288cf40966e02021-11-25T17:51:50ZExposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans10.3390/ijerph1822121881660-46011661-7827https://doaj.org/article/fd5b703636824a16a0e1288cf40966e02021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/22/12188https://doaj.org/toc/1661-7827https://doaj.org/toc/1660-4601Potential psychological issues faced by British nuclear test veterans have been under-researched. This study assessed the prevalence of clinically relevant anxiety in British nuclear test veterans and aimed to explore experiences of worry and the broader psychological impact of the British nuclear weapons testing programme. The Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (Short-Form) was completed by 89 British nuclear test veterans (33.7% met the criteria for clinically relevant anxiety). Nineteen veterans then participated in semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis of the data generated three themes. The first theme highlighted how worry was relevant only in a few cases (four) generally regarding their grandchildren’s health, but the guilt in those who perceive responsibility for family health conditions also appeared to be a pertinent issue. The second theme highlighted the anger towards authorities resulting from perceived negligence and deception. The third theme highlighted the relevance of how certain life events across the life course influence the potential psychological impact. This study suggests that guilt must be considered in (potentially) exposed individuals whose family members experience health conditions, which may exacerbate distress. It also suggests the importance that authorities ensure transparency when dealing with any radiological exposure scenario to reduce the potential for anger.George CollettWilliam R. YoungWendy MartinRhona M. AndersonMDPI AGarticleradiationanxietyworryBritish nuclear test veteransGAI-SFqualitativeMedicineRENInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Vol 18, Iss 12188, p 12188 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	radiation anxiety worry British nuclear test veterans GAI-SF qualitative Medicine R
spellingShingle	radiation anxiety worry British nuclear test veterans GAI-SF qualitative Medicine R George Collett William R. Young Wendy Martin Rhona M. Anderson Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
description	Potential psychological issues faced by British nuclear test veterans have been under-researched. This study assessed the prevalence of clinically relevant anxiety in British nuclear test veterans and aimed to explore experiences of worry and the broader psychological impact of the British nuclear weapons testing programme. The Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (Short-Form) was completed by 89 British nuclear test veterans (33.7% met the criteria for clinically relevant anxiety). Nineteen veterans then participated in semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis of the data generated three themes. The first theme highlighted how worry was relevant only in a few cases (four) generally regarding their grandchildren’s health, but the guilt in those who perceive responsibility for family health conditions also appeared to be a pertinent issue. The second theme highlighted the anger towards authorities resulting from perceived negligence and deception. The third theme highlighted the relevance of how certain life events across the life course influence the potential psychological impact. This study suggests that guilt must be considered in (potentially) exposed individuals whose family members experience health conditions, which may exacerbate distress. It also suggests the importance that authorities ensure transparency when dealing with any radiological exposure scenario to reduce the potential for anger.
format	article
author	George Collett William R. Young Wendy Martin Rhona M. Anderson
author_facet	George Collett William R. Young Wendy Martin Rhona M. Anderson
author_sort	George Collett
title	Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
title_short	Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
title_full	Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
title_fullStr	Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
title_full_unstemmed	Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans
title_sort	exposure worry: the psychological impact of perceived ionizing radiation exposure in british nuclear test veterans
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/fd5b703636824a16a0e1288cf40966e0
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Exposure Worry: The Psychological Impact of Perceived Ionizing Radiation Exposure in British Nuclear Test Veterans

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