Examining the Impact of Daily Life on Emotionality in Justice-Involved Veterans: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Approach

• In Event: Mental Health, Trauma, and Violence Among Online Communities and Justice-Involved Populations

Abstract

Justice-involved veterans commonly face mental and behavioral health problems after military service. However, no research has explored these challenges within an ecological momentary framework. As such, there is still much to learn about how daily life impacts justice-involved veterans’ emotionality (e.g., depression, anxiety, violence, etc.) on a day-to-day or moment-to-moment basis. To address this gap, the current study uses Ecological Momentary Assessments to follow 36 justice-involved veterans with mental/behavioral health problems over the course of an average week. Utilizing both mean-level analyses and mixed-effects regression models, the current study is the first to apply an ecological momentary approach to investigate emotional fluctuations within the daily environments of justice-involved veterans, specifically exploring the effects of togetherness and activity on their psychological well-being. Results show that these veterans spend a significant amount time alone, with emotional states fluctuating widely throughout the day. Further, spending time with other people significantly improved various dimensions of emotionality for this sample, and in many cases, the act of just "doing something" was enough to positively affect psychological well-being. These findings suggest that increasing social interaction and daily engagement could positively impact the emotional well-being of justice-involved veterans, particularly those with mental and behavioral health problems.

Authors

• Brice Terpstra, Southern Illinois University Carbondale

• Philip Mulvey, Sam Houston State University