Publication year
2015
Citation Title
Influences of cumulative risk and protective factors on the adjustment of adolescents in military families.
Journal Name
Family Relations
Journal Volume
64
Issue Number
3
Page Numbers
363-377
DOI
10.1111/fare.12123
Summary
The well-being of adolescents in families with at least one Active Duty military parent was examined in light of risk factors (both general and specific to military families) as well as protective factors. Experience of cumulative risk factors was a predictor of increased depression, decreased academic performance, and decreased persistence. Social support, from within the family and from outside the family, minimized relationships between cumulative risk factors and adolescents’ outcomes.
Key Findings
Adolescents in Active Duty military families who reported at least one positive social connection experienced better developmental outcomes.
While in general, there was a strong relationship between cumulative risk and youth outcomes, high levels of family support minimized the impact of that risk on depression, grades, and persistence.
Engagement in formal supportive programs lessened the relationship between the presence of numerous risk factors and adolescents’ grades.
Implications for Program Leaders
Develop curricula that encourage parents to provide high levels of family support to adolescents in active military families, for example, increasing parents’ ability to effectively listen to the adolescent
Create programs that encourage mentoring and the fostering of social support for youth in military families
Consider delivering programs for at-risk adolescents at both individual and family levels
Implications for Policy Makers
Recommend the continual development of formal programs for adolescents of Active Duty military families
Encourage programs to consider creating avenues for mentorship of youth in military families
Suggest training for professionals who work with military families regarding the specific cumulative stressors faced by adolescents who have Active Duty military parent(s)
Methods
Researchers used multiple community-based methods to recruit adolescents in Active Duty military families.
Surveys were administered in computer laboratories on post and included questions about risk factors, family support, informal social connections, formal program engagement, depressive symptoms, academic performance, and persistence.
Data were analyzed to examine the relationship between risk factors and youth outcomes with particular attention to the buffering effect of social support.
Participants
Participants were 1,036 youth with at least one Active Duty military parent located at four U.S. Army installations.
Youth ranged in age from 11 to 18 (mean age was 13.39 years, SD=1.98years).
This sample consisted of an equal proportion of genders, with 62% reporting being part of a racial/ethnic minority and 34% not living with both biological parents.
Limitations
Data collected in the study are cross-sectional and therefore do not allow for interpretations of causality.
Adolescents themselves completed the survey, so they may have underreported certain difficulties.
Individuals who participated opted into the study; there may be important differences between those who decided to participate and those who did not.
Avenues for Future Research
Utilize longitudinal designs to explore the trajectory of military youth well-being over time and its relationship to examined protective factors, with particular attention to transition periods
Include measures from multiple reporters (for example, youth, parents, teachers, etc.) in order to give a more well-rounded understanding of youth well-being
Focus on methods of identifying high-risk youth in Active Duty military families
Focus
Army
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Branch
Military Component
Abstract
The accumulation of stressors is adversely related to adolescent well-being. Using the contextual model of family stress and the theory of community action and change, the authors explored normative and context-specific risks factors among adolescents from military families (N=1,036) and the role of relationships (family, informal networks, formal systems) as protective factors. Youth who reported higher levels of cumulative risk experienced more depressive symptoms, lower academic performance, and lower persistence. When accounting for family support and presence of informal networks, depressive symptoms were lower, academic performance was higher, and persistence was higher; participation in formal systems was associated with better academic performance. The influential nature of cumulative risk was mitigated in the presence of meaningful relationships, providing support for empiricallygrounded leverage points to enhance positive youth development.
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