An Exploration of Army Wives' Responses to Spousal Deployment: Stressors and Protective Factors

This study empirically developed a theoretical model of army wives’ resilience amid deployment. A sample of 18 women, representing army bases in Southern and Western parts of the United States, were interviewed about their experience of spousal wartime deployment. Through the use of grounded theory methods, findings revealed that stress unfolds across the deployment cycle. Adaptation in response to stress was found to occur through the dynamic engagement of resilience processes across individual (e.g., acculturation, purpose/meaning, emotional expression), family (e.g., communication, role flexibility, emotion regulation, problem solving, and coconstructing meaning), and sociocultural (e.g., information, belongingness, shared beliefs, practical support) levels. Implications for clinical training, assessment, prevention, intervention, and future research in couples and family psychology domains are discussed.