Depression, anxiety, and stress in partners of Australian combat veterans and military personnel: a comparison with Australian population norms

Abstract

Partners of Australian combat veterans are at an increased risk of experiencing mental health problems. The present study provides a comparative analysis of the mental health of partners of veterans with that of the Australian normative data. To compare different types of groups of partners, the study samples comprised: (a) partners of Australian combat veterans (Sample 1: n = 282, age M = 60.79, SD = 5.05), (b) a sub-sample of partners of Australian combat veterans from the previous sample (Sample 2: n = 50; M = 60.06, SD = 4.80), (c) partners of Special Air Services Regiment (SASR) personnel (Sample 3: n = 40, age M = 34.39SD = 7.01), and (d) partners of current serving military (non-SASR) personnel (Sample 4: n = 38, age M = 32.37, SD = 6.20). Respondents completed measures assessing their reported levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. Samples 1 and 2 comprised partners of Australian military veterans who reported significantly greater symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress than the comparative population norms. The sample of SASR personnel partners (Sample 3) reported significantly lower levels of depression and anxiety, whereas the sample with non-SASR personnel partners (Sample 4) reported a significantly greater stress symptomatology than the comparative norms. Number of deployments was found to be associated with depression, anxiety, and stress in partners of non-SASR veterans (Sample 4). Lessons and protective factors can be learnt from groups within the current military as to what may assist partners and families to maintain a better level of psychosocial health.

Identifying psychological outcomes in families of Five Eyes alliance armed forces Veterans: A systematic review

“…Half of the studies reviewed (N = 12) were Australian and all focused on family members of Vietnam Veterans, specifically the relationships between Veteran PTSD and mental health outcomes in partners 53,55,56,69,72 /adult children, 57,[63][64][65][66][67]70 with the quantitative studies examining the prevalence of psychopathologies in these populations compared to other military sub-groups and national prevalence rates. Qualitative studies were very much family focused, exploring the experience of living with a Veteran's PTSD and eff ects on the entire family, both positive and negative.…”

“…54 Several studies covered multiple psychological outcomes in Australian partner populations as compared to national prevalence rates. MacDonell, Bhullar, and Thorsteinsson (Australia) 55 examined anxiety, depression, and stress in four samples of military partners, with partners of ex-service members showing mean scores for anxiety (g = 0.79), depression (g = 0.66), and stress ( g = 0.80) far more than population norms. O'Toole et al (Australia) 56 found higher prevalence rates of 11 out of 17 psychopathologies in a partner sample, with generalized anxiety disorder associated with Veteran suicidal ideation and severe single-episode and moderate recurrent depression associated with combat-related Veteran PTSD and battle casualty, respectively.…”

Parental perceptions of social and emotional well‐being of young children from Australian military families

“…Living in regional and rural Australian communities profoundly impacts the ability of residents to take advantage of delivery modalities and payment methods to access mental health services 4 despite having a high need for these services. Australian research reports that the Defence family members, especially partners of those deployed, experience unique caregiving stressors, poor marital adjustment and life satisfaction and significantly higher levels of depression, stress and anxiety, when compared with population norms 5 . In addition, in the absence of required specialist support, parents may not have the knowledge, skills and confidence to adequately support their children's well‐being and build their resilience.…”

“…Australian research reports that the Defence family members, especially partners of those deployed, experience unique caregiving stressors, poor marital adjustment and life satisfaction and significantly higher levels of depression, stress and anxiety, when compared with population norms. 5 In addition, in the absence of required specialist support, parents may not have the knowledge, skills and confidence to adequately support their children's well-being and build their resilience. Defence families, and partners of those deployed, experience stressors typically not automatically associated with civilian families.…”