Publication year
2008
Citation Title
Psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction in spouses of Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans: Relationships with spouses' perceptions of veterans' experiences and symptoms.
Journal Name
Journal of Family Psychology
Journal Volume
22
Issue Number
4
Page Numbers
586-594
DOI
10.1037/0893-3200.22.3.586
Summary
The psychological symptoms and martial satisfaction of women who were the wives of Army Veteran's who been deployed were assessed. This study ask husbands for self-reports of their experiences and wives their perception of these experiences. Results indicated that spouses experience mental health issues. When Veterans failed to acknowledge their own mental health issues, wives reported higher levels of distress. Wives perceptions of the cause of mental health issues in Veterans influenced marital satisfaction.
Key Findings
Some spouses reported clinical levels of depressive symptoms (45%) and met criteria for posttrumatic stress disorder (PTSD; 10%).
The negative impact of deployment on marital satisfaction was reduced when wives attributed Veterans' psychological symptoms to an understandable cause, like high levels of combat exposure.
Spouses experienced the greatest distress when they perceived substantial psychological problems in Veterans but the Veterans failed to acknowledge such problems.
Implications for Program Leaders
Offer support groups to spouses of Service members who may be experiencing mental health issues
Educate military spouses regarding the potential for spouses' attributions about their Veterans' mental health to buffer relationship distress by helping spouses conceptualize Veterans' psychological symptoms in the context of deployment/combat experiences
Disseminate information to military families regarding how mental health issues in one family member can influence the mental heath of other family members and resources to help cope with these issues
Implications for Policy Makers
Continue to support programs that offer mental health resource to Service members and their families
Recommend family education and inclusion of wives in Veterans' treatment due to the role that wives' perceptions of Veterans' symptoms play in both marital satisfaction and wives' well-being
Continue to support programs aimed at enhancing family readiness prior to deployment and reintegration workshops post-deployment
Methods
The Commisioner of Veterans Affairs identified eligable Veterans via discharge paper (DD-214s) who were mailed surveys.
Male Veterans and their wives completed questionnaires approximately three months post-deployment to Iraq.
Veterans and spouses completed assessments regarding PTSD and depression symptoms, relationship satisfaction, and combat exposure.
Participants
The sample consisted of 49 male Utah National Guard Soldiers.
The majority of Soldiers were White (95%), 33.5 years of age on average, and an average length of service of 12.5 years.
Spouses were mostly White (98%), and had an average age of 32.5 years.
Limitations
The sample is relatively small and homogeneous (all from one National Guard Unit), limiting the external validity of the findings.
The results may not generalize to Active Component Veterans or soldiers from other ethnicities, ages, and backgrounds.
The couples who chose to participate in this study may differ from nonparticipants in a way that was not measured. For example, they may have better communication skills than those who did not participate.
Avenues for Future Research
Utilize a larger, more diverse samples to explore interpersonal perceptions within intimate relationships in military families
Longitudinally assess marital functioning and mental health in couples prior to deployment and following combat exposure to specifically examine the effects of combat on marital functioning
Assess if results differ with female Veterans and their intimate partners
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Component
Abstract
Much research has shown that spouses of combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have higher rates of psychological and marital distress than do spouses of veterans without PTSD; however, very few studies have examined potential mechanisms of this increased vulnerability. The current study examined spouses of National Guard soldiers recently returned from deployments in Iraq. In addition to documenting elevated levels of psychological symptoms in these spouses, the authors found that spouses experienced greater symptom severity when they perceived high levels of symptoms in soldiers but the soldiers endorsed low levels of symptoms. Furthermore, spouses' marital satisfaction was negatively linked to soldiers' self-reported symptom severity only when spouses perceived that soldiers had experienced low levels of combat activity while deployed. When spouses perceived high levels of such activity, soldiers' self-reported symptoms had no relationship with spouses' marital satisfaction. These findings highlight the importance of interpersonal perceptions in intimate relationships and are consistent with the notion that uncontrollable attributions for a relative's mental health problems may provide a buffer against relationship distress.
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