Citation

Olson JR, Welsh JA, Perkins DF, Ormsby LJ. Fam. Relat. 2018; 67(5): 615-629.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, National Council on Family Relations (USA), Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/fare.12343

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

OBJECTIVE Using an ecological resilience model, we sought to identify protective factors that buffer against the effects of stressful deployment-related experiences on symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among active duty U.S. Air Force personnel who were married or in a committed relationship. Background Stressful deployment experiences are associated with PTSD symptoms among active duty military personnel. However, certain protective factors may buffer against negative effects of such experiences.

METHOD Analyses for the present study were active duty military personnel who completed the 2011 Air Force Community Assessment Survey, were married or in a committed relationship, and had completed at least one deployment at the time of the survey (N = 12,166).

RESULTS Regression analyses indicated that stressful deployment experiences were statistically related to elevated PTSD symptoms but also that both personal and contextual factors moderated those symptoms. Furthermore, self-efficacy, family coping, spouse/partner support, financial resources, and religious participation moderated the relation between stressful deployment experiences and PTSD symptoms.

CONCLUSION PTSD symptoms were positively associated with stressful deployment experiences, and symptoms were less likely to occur when service members experienced support from individual, family, and community sources. Implications Interventions that promote self-efficacy and social support from multiple ecological contexts may help reduce PTSD symptoms among combat-exposed Air Force personnel.

Language: en

Keywords

PTSD; resilience; self-efficacy; social context; stress