The Impact of Deployment on U.S. Military Families

• Published in: The American psychologist Vol. 65; no. 6; pp. 599 - 609
• Main Authors: Sheppard, Sean C, Malatras, Jennifer Weil, Israel, Allen C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Psychological Association 01-09-2010
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child Abuse; Child development; Children; Community mental health services; Conflict; Couple and family; Deployment; Developmental psychology; Emotional Stability; Families & family life; Family - psychology; Family Relations; Family Relationship; Family studies; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Goals; Health Services; Human; Humans; Mental Health; Military; Military Deployment; Military Personnel; Military Personnel - psychology; Military research; Military sociology; Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; Primary care; Primary health care; Psychological effects; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Servicemen; Social psychology; U.S.A; United States; War; Well-being; United States; North America; America; United States > US; family stability; military deployment; family outcomes; child outcomes; Social environment; Human; Stability; Family environment; Psychological effect; Child; Military
• ISSN: 0003-066X; 1935-990X
• DOI: 10.1037/a0020332

Several recent articles have explored the effects of military deployment on U.S. service members' mental health outcomes. Although increased attention has also begun to focus on the effects of deployment on military families, providing a conceptualization for the mechanisms of this process can help organize existing information and inform future efforts. In this article we seek to draw greater attention to the effects of deployment on service members and to provide an overview of recent literature on the impact of deployment on service members and military families. A further goal is then to provide one conceptual perspective-a model of family stability-that may help inform our understanding of the impact of military deployment on families. Beyond informing research, the issues presented in this article have far-reaching consequences not only for American military families and their current mental health and primary care providers but also for practitioners in the broader mental health community who will be increasingly called upon to provide services to this population.