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Joyce Wessel Raezer Executive Director National Military Family Association October 21, 2010

Joyce Wessel Raezer Executive Director National Military Family Association October 21, 2010. Children on the Homefront: The Experience of Children from Military Families. Research on Spouses and Deployment Shows Some Negative Effects.

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Joyce Wessel Raezer Executive Director National Military Family Association October 21, 2010

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  1. Joyce Wessel Raezer Executive Director National Military Family Association October 21, 2010 Children on the Homefront: The Experience of Children from Military Families

  2. Research on Spouses and Deployment Shows Some Negative Effects • Some OEF/OIF studies show that deployment affects marital relationships and spouse’s well-being • Stress during combat deployments may place more strain on couple’s relationship • Recent studies point to a link between spouse’s poor mental health and combat-related deployments

  3. Emerging Body of Research Focusing on Deployment and Children • Multiple, prolonged deployments are straining families • Early studies suggest some impact on children • Stress • Maltreatment • School problems

  4. We Sponsored the Largest Study of Military Children’s Emotional Well-Being • Commissioned RAND Corporation to Address two key questions: • How are school-age military children faring? • What types of issues do military children face related to deployment? • *research findings slides developed by RAND

  5. Study Sample and Approach • Sample: 1,500 families (from 9,000+ applicants to 2008 Operation Purple® camps) • Designed to represent deploying personnel by service and component • Children ages 11- 17 • Racial/ethnic and gender mix (28% minorities, 47% girls) • Multiple waves of data collection • Phone survey with child and non-deployed parent • June-August 2008 • Baseline results published in January 2010 Pediatrics, journal of the American Association of Pediatrics • Longitudinal data being released

  6. How Are Military Children Faring Compared to Other U.S. Children? Peer relationships Academic engagement Functioning at or above U.S. average Functioning below U.S. average Emotional difficulties Family relationships Anxiety

  7. Higher Percentage of Study Sample Reported Elevated Anxiety Symptoms

  8. Higher Percentage of Study Sample Reported Moderate to High Number of Emotional Difficulties

  9. Deployment-Related Risk Factors • Age • Gender • Total time deployed • Caregiver Mental Health

  10. Youth Reported Deployment Challenges Dealing with life without DP Helping caregiver deal with life without DP Not having people understand what deployment is like Feeling misunderstood by people in your school, community Missing school activities due to transportation issues Feeling like you had no one to talk to about feeling sad, stress 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 DP= Deployed Parent Percent %

  11. Parent Reported Deployment Challenges Taking on more responsibilities at home/caring for children Helping child deal with life without DP Feeling like people in my community don'tget what life is like for me Spending more time with child on homework Talking to teachers about child schoolbehavior or performance Feeling like I had no one to talk to aboutstress, sadness Losing contact with other military families No longer spending time with othermilitary families 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 DP= Deployed Parent Percent (%)

  12. Youth and Parent Reported Reintegration Challenges Fitting DP back in home routine Worrying about the next deployment Dealing with DP mood changes Getting to know DP again Figuring out who to turn to for advice Key: Youth, Parent 10 20 30 40 50 60 0 70 Percent (%) DP= Deployed Parent

  13. Implications for Helping Military Families • Families facing longer deployments may need targeted support • Older teens • Girls • Supports need to be in place across entire deployment cycle, including reintegration • Some non-deployed parents may need targeted mental health support • Communities must show they care

  14. Next Steps for the Study • Followed the same children and parents over period of one year, analyses are ongoing • Do effects of parental deployment on child mental health intensify or diminish over time? • Preliminary analyses confirm earlier findings • The longer a parent is away, the more it matters for child’s mental health • Effects are greatest for older teens and girls • Also conducted in-depth assessment of how non-deployed parents are faring

  15. What You Can Do • Share best practices: What’s working to support military families in your community? • Integrate support for military families into your professional/volunteer life • Partner with others in your community • Look for our Blueprint for Action

  16. Contact Us • Joyce Wessel Raezer • Executive Director • JRaezer@MilitaryFamily.org • 703.931.6632 • www.MilitaryFamily.org

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