Journal of Traumatic Stress, Vol. 21, No. 3, June 2008, pp. 318–325 ( C  2008) The Contribution of Stressful Life Events Throughout the Life Cycle to Combat-Induced Psychopathology Zahava Solomon The Adler Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection and Bob Shapel School of Social Work, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel Shlomit Zur-Noah Bob Shapel School of Social Work, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel Danny Horesh The Adler Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection, and Department of Psychology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel Gadi Zerach The Adler Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel Giora Keinan Department of Psychology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel This study examines the contribution of prewar life events, war exposure, and postwar life events to combat- induced psychopathology among 425 Israeli War veterans from the Lebanon War. Data was collected at two time points (1983 and 2002). The sample included veterans with and without combat stress reaction (CSR). Battle intensity and subjective experience of risk in war were associated with CSR. Negative childhood life events, CSR, PTSD in 1983 and postwar negative life events were associated with PTSD in 2002. Furthermore, a path analysis revealed that CSR mediated the relation between battle intensity and PTSD in 2002. Our findings suggest that stressful life events throughout the life cycle contribute significantly to veterans’ posttraumatic symptomatology, above and beyond combat exposure. Combat often substantially affects soldiers’ minds. The acute pathological reaction known as combat stress reaction (CSR) is polymorphic and labile in nature. In some instances, this ini- tial acute reaction crystallizes into a chronic disorder, most no- tably posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; e.g., Solomon, 1993), whereas in others the traumatic residues abate either spontaneously or with professional intervention. This study aims to assess the con- tribution of stressful life events before, during, and after the war to combat-induced psychopathology, namely CSR and PTSD. The term life events refers to major stressful and most of the time negative life events. Life events have consistently been implicated in the genesis and perpetuation of many mental disorders, including PTSD (e.g., B¨ odvard´ ottir & Elklit, 2004). Professionals differ, however, in their views of life events’ relative contribution to one’s ability to cope with subsequent trauma (Murrell & Norris, 1983). The life change model, or vulnerability perspective, views life events as stressors that upset homeostasis, exhaust coping resources, Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to: Zahava Solomon,The Adler Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel. E-mail: Solomon@post.tau.ac.il. C  2008 International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies. Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI: 10.1002/jts.20340 and render individuals more vulnerable (e.g., Holmes & Masuda, 1974). Studies supporting this model (e.g., Breslau, Chilcoat, Kessler, & Davis, 1999) showed stressful life events to be associated with a higher risk of developing negative psychological and phys- ical consequences following subsequent adversity. The facilitator model, or resilience perspective, on the other hand, contends that prior stressful experiences often lower the risk of mental distress following subsequent exposure to stress (e.g., Ruch, Chandler, & Hunter, 1980). This may be explained by the concept of stress in- oculation (Meichenbaum & Cameron, 1978), according to which multiple stressful experiences increase familiarity, lead to a decrease in the amount of perceived stress, and enable more successful adap- tation. This notion is supported by several studies (e.g., Knight, Gatz, Heller, & Bengtson, 2000). Several researchers (e.g., Murrell & Norris, 1983) have pointed out that recent life events are more potent pathogenic agents than remote life events. However, it remains unclear what is the relative 318