Publication year
2010
Citation Title
The long war and parental combat deployment: Effects on military children and at-home spouses.
Journal Name
Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Journal Volume
49
Issue Number
4
Page Numbers
310-320
DOI
10.1016/j.jaac.2010.01.003
Summary
Survey data were utilized to examine the impact of parental combat deployments, parental distress, and cumulative duration of parent deployment on child adjustment (i.e., internalizing, externalizing, depression, and anxiety) in families with currently deployed and recently returned Service members. Results indicate that parental deployment can negatively influence child adjustment during and following deployment.
Key Findings
Children with either a deployed or recently returned parent demonstrated resilience, with adjustment and depression levels comparable to community norms; however, anxiety was high for youth in both deployment groups: 32% of the children with recently returned parents and 25% of the children with currently deployed parents had clinically significant anxiety symptoms.
Cumulative length of parental combat-related deployments predicted increased child depression and externalizing symptoms as well as caregiver depressive symptoms, global distress, and posttraumatic stress severity.
Parental distress, whether reported by caregiving parents or Service members, predicted child internalizing and externalizing symptoms.
Implications for Program Leaders
Offer workshops to military youth with age-appropriate strategies for emotion-regulation to help children cope with anxious thoughts and feelings
Provide trainings to military parents regarding ways to support the development of their children’s problem-solving and emotion regulation skills
Distribute informational packets to military families prior to deployment regarding the programs and services available to them throughout the deployment cycle
Implications for Policy Makers
Continue to support family-focused programs for military families impacted by deployment
Support programs aimed at enhancing family readiness
Encourage collaboration among the Department of Defense and community-based programs that offer support to military spouses during deployment in an effort to provide comprehensive care
Methods
Children and their at-home civilian and/or recently returned active duty parent were surveyed.
The sample included children of Active Duty Army or Marine Corps parents currently deployed or recently returned from Afghanistan or Iraq.
Participants were recruited via installation wide mailings that specified the purpose of the study and the eligibility criteria.
Participants
Participants were 272 children, 163 at-home civilian parents and 65 recently returned active duty parent.
Forty-five percent of the children in the sample were female, with a mean age of 8.5 (SD = 2.0) years.
All at-home civilians were female (100%), with an average age of 33.4 (SD = 6.4) years.
The majority of Service members were non-commissioned officer (61%).
Limitations
Participants volunteered for the study and therefore, those who choose to participate may be functioning (better or worse) than families who choose not to participate.
Participants included only Active Duty parents in the Army and Marine Corps; therefore, results may not be generalizable to families in other military branches of those in the Reserves and National Guard.
The use of self-report surveys means that parents and children may be trying to respond in the “best” way, which could bias results.
Avenues for Future Research
Examine the effects of children’s participation in community afterschool and youth development programs as a protective factor that may affect family distress during parental deployment
Explore the bidirectional effect of parental distress and child symptoms over time
Replicate this study with inclusion of all four of the military services, systematically examining the effects of deployment on family adjustment within various branches and ranks
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Component
Abstract
Objective: Given the growing number of military service members with families and the multiple combat deployments characterizing current war time duties, the impact of deployments on military children requires clarification. Behavioral and emotional adjustment problems were examined in children (aged 6 through 12) of an active duty Army or Marine Corps parent currently deployed (CD) or recently returned (RR) from Afghanistan or Iraq. Method: Children (N = 272) and their at-home civilian (AHC) (N = 163) and/or recently returned active duty (AD) parent (N = 65) were interviewed. Child adjustment outcomes were examined in relation to parental psychological distress and months of combat deployment (of the AD) using mixed effects linear models. Results: Parental distress (AHC and AD) and cumulative length of parental combat–related deployments during the child's lifetime independently predicted increased child depression and externalizing symptoms. Although behavioral adjustment and depression levels were comparable to community norms, anxiety was significantly elevated in children in both deployment groups. In contrast, AHC parental distress was greater in those with a CD (vs. RR) spouse. Conclusions: Findings indicate that parental combat deployment has a cumulative effect on children that remains even after the deployed parent returns home, and that is predicted by psychological distress of both the AD and AHC parent. Such data may be informative for screening, prevention, and intervention strategies.
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