Suchergebnisse

Social support is a critical determinant of military service members' mental and behavioral health outcomes, but few studies have investigated social support types and sources in the mixed family and military social networks in which service members are embedded. We applied multilevel logistic regression modeling to investigate links between active-duty Army Soldiers' individual demographic and military characteristics, relational characteristics, and social support outcomes, in sample of 241 active-duty U.S. Army personnel. Results showed that participants who rated unit cohesion higher were more likely to report receiving informational, emotional, and mental health help-seeking support. Participants were more likely to receive informational, emotional, and help-seeking support from a romantic partner or deployment buddy than a relative and less likely to receive help-seeking support from males than females. Findings highlight the critical importance of both unit level and external relationships in meeting Soldiers' social support needs.

Little is known about the functioning of children in veteran-connected families, who may experience a unique constellation of stressors including exposure to parental mental health symptoms and unemployment. Further, research has not previously considered the role of school climate in counteracting these stressors for veteran-connected students. This preliminary study examines the relationship between veteran parent's mental health and employment with adverse outcomes for their school-age children, as well as the potential moderating effect of safe school climate. Participants were 218 veteran parents of children in K-12 schools, who completed the Chicago Veterans Survey, including measures of PTSD and depression, unemployment, a school safety scale drawn from the California School Parent Survey, and an adverse child functioning screening tool. Regression models suggest that depression symptomatology and perceptions of less safe school climate were significantly associated with adverse outcomes among veteran-connected students. Safe school climate buffered against the negative effects of parents' depression symptoms, particularly at lower levels of depression severity. Findings suggest the need for future research to explore the potentially crucial role for schools, including teachers, administrators, and particularly school-based mental health providers, in supporting the healthy functioning of veteran-connected students and their families.