Poster #20 - Marital and Parent-Child Relationship Quality as Predictors of Children's Changing Adaptation over Deployment

• In Event: Poster Session 16

Abstract

Over the course of the last 15 years increasing effort has been focused on attempting to understand the effects of military deployment on the adaptation of military-connected children and families. Research has examined the changing nature of both parent-child and marital relationships over the course of deployment, noting for instance decreases in marital satisfaction and separation impacts on parent-child relationships. Yet to date, less work has been done to understand what role marital or parent-child relationship quality plays in contributing to children’s adjustment over deployment. Research with non-military families suggests that both factors have important implications for children’s socio-emotional adjustment. Therefore, this study set out to examine the influence of both marital and parent-child relationship quality on changes in children’s externalizing and internalizing adjustment over the beginning of deployment.
Participants in this study included 86 Active Duty Marine families, with children between the ages of 4 and 7 years old (M = 5.6 years, SD = 10 months; 47% girls). The current study is part of a larger longitudinal study that followed families from pre- to post-deployment time points in order to examine the effect of military deployment on child and family adjustment. For this study, Marine fathers completed questionnaires regarding their children’s level of internalizing difficulties (CBCL) prior to their deployment. Non-military mothers completed questionnaires regarding their marital satisfaction (DAS) and parent-child relationship quality (PSI dsyfunctional parent-child interactions) prior to deployment, as well as regarding their child’s internalizing symptoms halfway through deployment (CBCL).
Linear regression analyses were used to examine the degree to which parent-child relationship quality and marital satisfaction contributed to change in children’s symptoms of psychopathology. Findings indicated that while children’s symptoms of psychopathology were somewhat stable over time, F(1, 85) 17.26, p< .001, R2 = .17, parent-child relationship quality and marital relationship quality were both significant predictors of change in symptoms (B = .48 and -.17 respectively) predicting an additional 26% of the variance, F(2,83) = 19.33, p < .001.
These findings suggest that relationship quality within both the parent-child and marital dyads prior to deployment may play an important role in exacerbating or buffering the risk associated with deployment. These findings are reflective of what has been found in civilian literatures regarding the centrality of these relationships in contributing to child adaptation. Further analyses will examine how these changing dyadic relationships across deployment may continue to influence child adaptation. These findings have important implications for targeted prevention and intervention efforts with military families and children, suggesting important areas for promoting the best possible adaptation.

Authors

• Sammy Harres
  Presenting Author

• Madisyn Karwat

• Julie Wargo Aikins, Wayne State University