1 - (SYM 73) Risk of Divorce Among a Sample of U.S. Army Couples: Examining Marital Processes, SM Mental Health, and Military Experiences over Time

Background: Marital distress is an ongoing concern for some U.S. military couples and can be associated with poor service member (SM) mental health, and lower job functioning and military retention rates (Wang et al., 2015). In turn, healthy military marriages can protect against the challenges of military life and associated morbidities (Vest et al., 2017). Thus, investigating the predictors of divorce, a possible outcome of marital distress, is relevant to the DoD’s interests in the health and well-being of its SMs. Variables such as couple communication, SM posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and combat have been identified as predictors of marital distress and divorce (Campbell & Renshaw, 2018). This study examines how marital processes, SM mental health, and SM military experiences predict risk of divorce over time. We hypothesized (1) higher levels of SM PTSD, SM psychological distress, negative communication, increased combat exposure, and longer deployments will each be associated with a higher risk of divorce We additionally hypothesized (2) higher levels of dedication, marital satisfaction, and positive bonding will each be associated with a decreased risk of divorce.

Methods: The sample comprises 608 couples consisting of a SM husband and civilian wife who participated in a randomized clinical trial testing the efficacy of a relationship education program in the U.S. Army.  Couples were eligible for the study if they were married, 18 years or older, fluent in English, and at least one partner was in active duty in the Army.  Remarkably, study staff were able to determine marital outcomes through the surveys and/or additional sources (i.e., direct outreach, court records, and social media) for 660 out of the 662 of the couples enrolled in the parent study at baseline. This allows for robust modeling of baseline predictors of divorce. In fact, about one-third of marriages in the current sample ended in divorce by the end of the study.

PLANNED ANALYSES AND

Discussion: Hypotheses will be addressed using a Cox proportional hazards model. Additionally, we will assess survival curves to describe the risk of divorce at different time points given mean levels of predictors. As the first study (to our knowledge) assessing military divorce up to eight years, we will link findings to gaps within literature related to the predictors of divorce, a rare outcome among military samples, and how these variables are associated in the context of time. Additionally, results may improve our understanding of how and when to best help distressed military couples.