Hitting Home: Relationships Between Recent Deployment, Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, and Marital Functioning for Army Couples

Survey data from Army husbands and civilian wives were utilized to examine whether a recent history of deployment and current posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms were related to several aspects of marital functioning (i.e., satisfaction, negative communication, positive bonding, parenting alliance, confidence, dedication, and satisfaction with sacrificing for the spouse). Results indicated that a recent history of deployment did not negatively influence marital functioning. However, PTSD symptoms were associated with reduced marital functioning, even after accounting for adaptive processes.