Gregg Zoroya

USA TODAY

The imminent end of the U.S. war in Afghanistan has triggered some of the highest morale and lowest levels of mental illness among deployed U.S. soldiers in years, according to an Army mental health study released Monday.

The findings by Army scientists working in the combat zone last year dovetails with the 19% drop in active-duty Army suicides in 2013 announced by the service Friday.

The study, which interviewed war-zone troops anonymously, also notes fewer soldiers deployed to Afghanistan contemplated suicide. Some 8.5% did, down from 13% in 2010.

"We're seeing some of the lowest rates of behavioral health issues. We're seeing leadership rates higher than they were in the past. Morale is on the rise. All of the key indicators that we would be looking at are looking much better," says Army Lt. Col. Maurice Sipos, a research psychologist and author of the report.

Despite the improvements, the stigma against seeking mental health help remains, the study shows. Nearly half of the surveyed soldiers who need therapy said the perception of weakness discouraged them from seeking help. That rate has remained unchanged for years despite military efforts to reduce it, the report said.

The report also showed that the more times a soldier is deployed, the greater the likelihood he or she will suffer from mental illness.

There are 34,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan compared with the peak of 100,000 in 2011. Afghan troops are taking the lead in combat operations as the United States prepares to end operations there this year.

Army researchers in Afghanistan surveyed 888 soldiers serving there last June and July and conducted focus-group discussions with an additional 78.

The results clearly show fewer U.S. troops engaging in combat. About one in five said they had killed combatants compared with one in three in 2010. About half said they had fired their weapons, compared with 70% in 2010.

More than half said their individual morale was either high or very high, a seven-point improvement from 2012.

Soldiers said an Army decision in 2011 to reduce deployment lengths to nine months from 12 was a key reason for higher morale, along with better living conditions that include air-conditioned barracks and wireless Internet, said Sipos.

About 10% of soldiers surveyed showed signs of psychological health problems, compared with 17.3% in 2012. Of those who had deployed at least twice before, the rate was 15%.

One area of vast improvement, researchers said, was in accessing mental health care. A high ratio of counselors-to-soldiers actually showed a surplus of behavioral health specialists in the war zone last year. That meant fewer soldiers reported troubling in getting assistance.

In addition, a key theme emerging from focus groups was a sense that Army leaders were showing greater interest in their soldiers' well-being. This praise was focused particularly on mid-level non-commissioned officers such as sergeants and staff sergeants.

Troops said these leaders were willing to listen to their problems and talk things out.

Researchers found that the Army was doing a better job of screening troops heading to Afghanistan so soldiers with psychological health problems were generally being left at home. Those diagnosed with problems while overseas were more likely to be sent home.

A review of records showed that suicides among soldiers in Afghanistan peaked in 2012 with 18 and that through July of last year, there had been two.