https://aub.ie/MilitaryREACH-Sanders2019

Sanders, W., Smith, B. N., Fox, A. B., & Vogt, D. (2019). Five-year impacts of family stressors and combat threat on the mental health of Afghanistan and Iraq war Veterans. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 32, 724-732. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.22437

The stress of combat-related deployment can negatively influence Veterans’ mental health. The conservation of resources theory guided the development of this study and suggests that individuals under stress will seek to maintain resources (e.g., relationships) to cope; thus, the supposition is that when family relationships are strained, vulnerability to traumatic events (e.g., combat) increases. First, this study examined how combat threat and family stressors during deployment were uniquely associated with mental health, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. Then, it examined whether family stressors amplify the association between combat threat and adverse mental health. Post 9/11 Veterans (N = 298) completed questionnaires on objective family stressors (i.e., discrete stressors of deployment, such as potential infidelity or financial problems), subjective family stressors (i.e., general concerns surrounding deployment, such as family’s ability to cope), and combat threat at baseline (Time 1) and subsequently completed questionnaires on PTSD and depression five years later (Time 2). Findings suggest that combat threat and objective family stressors experienced during deployment play an important and unique role in shaping Veterans’ mental health over time.

https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.22437

Deployment
Mental health
Veterans

Air Force
Army
Marine Corps
Navy
Multiple branches

Veteran

Veteran

Adulthood (18 yrs & older)
Young adulthood (18 - 29 yrs)
Thirties (30 - 39 yrs)
Middle age (40 - 64 yrs)

Longitudinal Study
Quantitative Study
Secondary Analysis

Sanders, Wesley, Smith, Brian N., Fox, Annie B., Vogt, Dawne

It has been well established that warfare-related stress puts service members at risk for a range of mental health problems after they return from deployment. Less is known about service members’ experience of family stressors during deployment. The aims of this study were to (a) evaluate whether family stressors would contribute unique variance to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive symptoms above and beyond combat threat during deployment and (b) examine whether family stressors would amplify the negative effects of combat threat on postmilitary mental health 5 years postdischarge. Study participants reported their experience of objective and subjective family stressors and combat threat during deployment. Objective family stressors demonstrated unique associations with PTSD and depression symptoms and remained significant after accounting for ongoing family stressors reported at follow-up. A significant interaction was found between objective family stressors and combat threat on PTSD symptoms, r = −.10. Although the association between combat threat and PTSD was significant for participants who reported high, B = 0.04; and low, B = 0.09, exposure to family stressors, the steeper slope for those exposed to fewer family stressors indicates a stronger effect of combat threat. Follow-up analyses revealed that veterans who experienced high amounts of family stress and high levels of combat threat reported significantly worse PTSD symptoms than those who reported low family stress, t(256) = 3.98, p < .001. Findings underscore the importance of attending to the role that family stressors experienced during deployment play in service members’ postmilitary mental health.

John Wiley & Sons

Article
REACH Publication

Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, WS
Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, BNS
Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, BNS
Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, ABF
MGH Institute of Health Professions, ABF
Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, DV
Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, DV