Abstract
The military mental health clinic is a medico-legal setting that provides servicemembers with treatment, administrative, and forensic services. Clinicians must be vigilant for malingering in this setting but flexible enough to recognize genuine symptoms. This task is often complicated by servicemembers’ delayed report of symptoms. Three explanatory models are proposed that distinguish delayed report from malingering: genuine delayed report of symptoms, acute distress malingering, and disability malingering. These explanatory models improve clinician objectivity and offer a systematic understanding of these different presentations.
Footnotes
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy of the Department of the Army, Department of Defense, or United States Government.
Disclosures of financial or other potential conflicts of interest: None.
- © 2022 American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
