Post‐9/11 military veterans' adjustment to civilian life over time following separation from service

Abstract

Objectives US military veterans face many challenges in transitioning to civilian life; little information is available regarding veterans' reintegration experiences over time. The current study characterized veterans' postdeployment stressful life events and concurrent psychosocial wellbeing over one year and determined how stressors and wellbeing differ by demographic factors. Methods Recent Post‐911 veterans (n = 402) were assessed approximately every three months for 1 year. Participants were 60% men, primarily White (78%), and 12% Latinx; the average age was 36 years. Results The frequency of stressful events decreased over time but was higher for men and minority‐race veterans (independent of time since separation). Veterans reported high mean levels of posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and insomnia symptoms, which improved slightly over time. Minority‐race and Latinx veterans had higher symptom levels and slower rates of symptom reduction. Conclusion Veterans remain distressed in their overall transition to civilian life. Interventions to promote resilience and help veterans manage readjustment to civilian life appear urgently needed.

Relationship of perceived neighborhood danger with depression and PTSD among veterans: The moderating role of social support and neighborhood cohesion

“…If personal ties to one's neighborhood are less established, they may be more easily disrupted and, therefore, less protective. Less connection with neighbors and the community may be especially common for the veteran population due to challenges associated with reintegration into civilian life (Park et al, 2021) and shorter residential tenure (less time to establish roots within neighborhoods) given the mobility of the veteran population (Wilson et al, 2018). For veterans exposed to prior traumas, related sequelae such as heightened perceptions of threat in the environment, perceptions of the world as a dangerous place (Ehlers & Clark, 2000), and ongoing hypervigilance (Holowka et al, 2012), may be amplified in high crime neighborhoods and provide further barriers to establishing neighborhood ties and support.…”

Family separation from military service and children's externalizing symptoms: Exploring moderation by non‐military spouse employment, family financial stress, marital quality, and the parenting alliance

“…Although separation from the military is a major transition in the lives of United States military families, researchers often are unable to follow families over time to observe their adjustment to post‐service life. One reason is that military and veteran research typically is siloed within these respective career stages, and research is infrequently longitudinal (Park et al., 2021). However, 10%–15% of active duty military members separate from service in a given year (Department of Defense [DoD], 2021).…”

“…Upon leaving the structure of the military, service members face challenges in establishing a civilian career, creating a new identity separate from service, and shifting family roles (Ahern et al., 2015; Park et al., 2021). Perhaps most critically, service members lose formal support resources and a tight‐knit informal support community critical to resilience (Pietrzak et al., 2010).…”

“…However, some of these separation difficulties may give way to better adaptation in the long run. Some evidence suggests that after separation, veteran service members may encounter decreasing stressful life events across the first year, such that the first few months after the transition shows the highest levels of diminished mental and physical health, and more financial and job stress which steadily declines across the 12 month period (Park et al., 2021).…”

Criminal legal involvement among recently separated veterans: Findings from the LIMBIC study.

“…Despite the scope and importance of criminal legal involvement among transitioning service members, scant research has investigated criminal legal involvement among veterans as they reintegrate into civilian life. Although studies of post-9/11 veterans have recruited samples from the most recent U.S. military conflict, they do not necessarily characterize the reintegration difficulties of service members when they transition out of the military (Park et al, 2021; Vogt et al, 2021). Some post-9/11 veterans may have separated from the military nearly 2 decades prior to data collection in these studies.…”