Relationship changes of military couples during reintegration: A longitudinal analysis

Knobloch-Fedders, L. M., Knobloch, L. K., Scott, S., & Fiore, H. (2020). Relationship changes of military couples during reintegration: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 37(7), 2145-2165. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407520917461

Guided by the emotional cycle of the deployment model, which divides the deployment cycle into distinct stages and identifies issues that may occur at each stage, this longitudinal study examined the post-deployment transition experiences of military couples (i.e., returning Service members and their athome partners). Data from 555 military couples were collected monthly for seven months after the return of the Service member from deployment. Military couples completed questionnaires regarding demographics (e.g., age, race) and marital satisfaction. They also responded to open-ended questions about how their relationship had changed over the past month. Content analysis was used to code open-ended responses and capture the type and frequency of relationship changes as well as the valence of the changes (i.e., positive, negative, or neutral) over time. Findings suggest that the relationship between Service members and their at-home partners changes in a variety of ways during reintegration.

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