Publication year
2013
Citation Title
Psychological health of military children: Longitudinal evaluation of a family-centered prevention program to enhance family resilience.
Journal Name
Military Medicine
Journal Volume
178
Issue Number
8
Page Numbers
838-845
DOI
10.7205/milmed-d-12-00502
Summary
The impact of a family centered prevention program, Families OverComing Under Stress Family Resilience Training (FOCUS), on the psychological adjustment of military children and parents was examined. Distress was significantly related among family members at the outset of the intervention; family functioning was improved at the end of the program as well as four to six months after the program ended.
Key Findings
Baseline levels of distress among Service members, non-military parents, and children were all significantly related.
At the onset of the program, children had elevated emotional and behavioral symptoms and both parents had greater anxiety and depression symptoms than community norms.
Family adjustment variables improved over the course of the program and predicted reduced distress among military children.
Implications for Program Leaders
Develop curricula on how to offer additional support to families during reintegration when a Service member is distressed
Offer trainings to community-based providers about how to address the mental health needs of military families during deployment and reintegration
Integrate programming that focuses on educating children about changes they may experience during deployment and reintegration
Implications for Policy Makers
Continue support for the development and evaluation of interventions related to reduction of family distress across all military branches
Encourage the increase of family prevention and intervention programs that address child adjustment during transition periods
Increase educational campaigns about child adjustment needs during transition periods for professionals who work with military families
Methods
Data were taken from another study that collected information from families with at least one Active Duty military parent and at least one dependent child from 11 U.S. Marine Corps and Navy installations in the United States and Japan.
Each family participated in FOCUS Family Resiliency training, which was delivered over eight modularized sessions in a parent-only, child-only, and family format about topics such as stress and communication.
Families completed pre- and post-surveys, as well as at one month and four to six months post-completion.
Participants
Participants included 280 families; 66% had a Service member in the Marine Corps and 35% had a Service member in the Navy.
Among the families, there were 505 children, about half of whom were male (56%), and the average age was 7.5 years (range = 3-17 years).
There were no data about the racial/ethnic composition of the sample.
Limitations
There was no control group and thus no conclusions about the improvement of adjustment and levels of distress being due to the intervention can be drawn.
The researchers specify that the program and its interventions can be delivered in different formats, but did not test the impact of those formats.
Percentages do not add up properly, lending doubt as to the accuracy of the reported results.
Avenues for Future Research
Conduct studies that include control groups to allow for comparisons between families who receive the intervention components and those who do not
Examine the relationships between child adjustment and family's levels of distress when children are cared for by alternative caregivers (e.g., grandparents) during deployment of military parents
Evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention in an older sample of children and their families
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Component
Abstract
Family-centered preventive interventions have been proposed as relevant to mitigating psychological health risk and promoting resilience in military families facing wartime deployment and reintegration. This study evaluates the impact of a family-centered prevention program, Families OverComing Under Stress Family Resilience Training (FOCUS), on the psychological adjustment of military children. Two primary goals include (1) understanding the relationships of distress among family members using a longitudinal path model to assess relations at the child and family level and (2) determining pathways of program impact on child adjustment. Multilevel data analysis using structural equation modeling was conducted with deidentified service delivery data from 280 families (505 children aged 3-17) in two follow-up assessments. Standardized measures included service member and civilian parental distress (Brief Symptom Inventory, PTSD Checklist, Military), child adjustment (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire), and family functioning (McMaster Family Assessment Device). Distress was significantly related among the service member parent, civilian parent, and children. FOCUS improved family functioning, which in turn significantly reduced child distress at follow-up. Salient components of improved family functioning in reducing child distress mirrored resilience processes targeted by FOCUS. These findings underscore the public health potential of family-centered prevention for military families and suggest areas for future research.
Abstract Document
Attach