The Perceived Effect of Stressors on Marital Satisfaction among Civilian Wives of Enlisted Soldiers Deployed to Somalia for Operation Restore Hope

Nearly 400 civilian wives (aged 18–56 yrs) of enlisted soldiers who had deployed to Somalia as part of Operation Restore Hope in late 1992 and early 1993 were surveyed in July/August 1993. Their reported post-deployment and retrospective pre-deployment marital satisfaction was predicted as a function of four potentially stressful events or conditions: experiencing a pregnancy during deployment, experiencing loneliness, experiencing the death of a close friend or relative, and/or having problems communicating with one's spouse. Pre-deployment marital stability was used as a control variable. Results from multivariate analyses of variance suggest that the effects of various difficulties during a brief deployment are less stressful, at least in terms of their impact on marital satisfaction, than is often assumed, even for marriages that might be considered "at risk" in terms of low marital stability.