https://aub.ie/MilitaryREACH-Mallonee2020

Mallonee, S., Riggs, D., & Stander, V. (2020). The impact of family stressors and resources on military spouse’s perception of post-deployment reunion stress. Military Psychology, 32(6), 369-379. https://doi.org/10.1080/08995605.2020.1785268

Situated in the Contextual Model of Family Stress (CMFS; i.e., family stress stems from cumulative stressors and family resources), this study examined whether family stressors (e.g., physical and mental health-related quality of life, stressful communication between spouses) and family resources (i.e., spousal social support, spouse’s personal growth during deployment) are uniquely associated with spouse’s reunion stress. Further, this study examined whether self-mastery (i.e., ability to control one’s life) may alter the associations between family stressors, resources, and spouse's reunion stress. Data from 1,558 military couples who participated in the Millennium Cohort Family Study were used to examine these relationships while also accounting for demographic (e.g., age, race) and military characteristics (e.g., paygrade, number of deployments). The results suggest that lower mental health-related quality of life and stressfulness of communication during deployment were related to higher levels of reunion stress for military spouses.

https://doi.org/10.1080/08995605.2020.1785268

Couples
Deployment
Mental health
Parents
Physical health

Army
Multiple branches

Active Duty

Active duty service member
Military families
Spouse of service member or veteran
Child of a service member or veteran

Adulthood (18 yrs & older)
Young adulthood (18 - 29 yrs)
Thirties (30 - 39 yrs)
Middle age (40 - 64 yrs)
Aged (65 yrs & older)
Very old (85 yrs & older)

Cross-Sectional Study
Secondary Analysis

Mallonee, Sybil, Riggs, David, Stander, Valerie

Much of the prior research on variables impacting spouses’ perceptions of reunion stress have focused on individual variables and have not examined these variables within their shared context, despite the indication from some research and theory that this is a key component of understanding couple’s responses to stressors. The present study examined the impact of various family stressors and resources, both independently and in conjunction with each other, on spouses’ perceptions of reunion stress. To examine these variables, the present study utilized cross-sectional data from a representative sample of 1,558 military service members and their spouses participating in the Millennium Cohort Family Study. Results indicated that poorer mental health among spouses and service members was associated with increased reunion stress as reported by spouses across all models tested. In addition, stressful communication during deployment was significantly associated with spouses’ perceptions of reunion stress. These results can help guide more targeted prevention and intervention efforts to decrease spouses’ sense of reunion stress.

Taylor & Francis

Article
REACH Publication

Department of Medical & Clinical Psychology, Uniformed Services University, SM
Department of Medical & Clinical Psychology, Uniformed Services University, DR
Naval Health Research Center, VS