Afifi, LindaPierce, MeghanWalker, Savannah2025-10-302025-10-302024https://hdl.handle.net/2144/516942024Substance use disorder is a serious mental health condition that affects a vast number of Americans every year. Substance use disorder frequently co-occurs with other psychological conditions and may impact cognitive functioning. Substance use affects a variety of populations, with nearly 60% of individuals older than 12 reporting the use of a substance within the past month (National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2019). However, a large gap of knowledge exists in this field among older veteran populations. Using a correlation analysis, we found there to be a significant relationship between substance use risk and PTSD in an elderly veteran population. Using multiple hierarchical regression analyses, we found that substance use risk is a significant predictor of cognitive functioning as measured by category fluency tests. Our findings indicate a growing need to examine substance use risk, comorbid conditions, and cognitive impairment in older veterans.en-USNeurosciencesBehavioral sciencesPTSDSubstance use disorderSubstance use riskThesis/Dissertation2025-10-30