April 4-6, 2024 • Hyatt Regency • Lexington, KY
Innovations in Health Communication
Innovations in Health Communication
Abstract: Understanding the Role of Resilience on Mental Health and Well-Being in Military Romantic Relationships
Couples within the military frequently encounter distinctive circumstances and transitions, compelling them to modify their existing lifestyles and discover novel ways to adapt. Factors such as caregiver responsibilities, financial strain, insufficient social support, and challenges in achieving a work-family balance can often be more influential in diminishing the quality of marital relationships in the military than even deployments. (Pflieger et al., 2018). Diminished relationship quality stemming from military- and non-military-based stressors can adversely affect psychological well-being for the service member and their romantic partner. For service members, research indicates a higher probability of issues such as posttraumatic stress, depression, and substance abuse among veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars (Street et al., 2022). Similarly, spouses of military personnel face an elevated risk of experiencing psychological challenges, such as issues with alcohol use, depression, anxiety, and symptoms that mimic posttraumatic stress disorder (Hendrix & Murphy, 2021). Thus, mental health issues are a common challenge that military couples face.
Military communities frequently point to resilience as a way for both the service member and their spouse to overcome difficult experiences and interpersonal episodes that contribute to poor mental health. The communication theory of resilience (Buzzanell, 2010) describes five processes that foster resilience in relationships: crafting normalcy, affirming identity anchors, maintaining, and using communication networks, putting alternative logics to work, and legitimizing negative feelings while foregrounding productive action. These resilience strategies are likely to be particularly relevant for military couples as they construct a life around their military identity, immerse themselves in the military community, and set aside personal feelings and individual pursuits for the good of the mission. Drawing upon this theoretical framework, this study investigated how military couples conceptualize resilience in their relationship and examined how calls to enact resilient communication can act as both a buffer and a burden when it comes to promoting mental health for service members and their partners.
Semi-structured interviews were completed individually with 23 romantic dyads (46 individuals) representing the Army, Navy, and Air Force in both enlisted and officer ranks from seven states, Japan, and South Korea. Participants were recruited from online military support groups and through snowball sampling. We used phronetic iterative analysis (Tracy, 2018) to examine evidence of the five communicative resilience processes within the emergent themes. Finally, we looked at how the enactment of resilience behaviors improved and/or undermined military couples’ experiences of mental health, stress, and well-being. Findings describe military couples using resilience processes to cope with military life. However, both service members and spouses express resilience, increasing stress in relationships. In addition, resilience is discussed as a factor that dissuades couples from discussing or seeking help for mental health concerns. The results are discussed in terms of their alignment with the logic of the communication theory of resilience and other perspectives on coping and resilience, as well as the practical implications for helping military couples cope with mental health struggles arising from the various stressors that accompany a life of military service.
Military communities frequently point to resilience as a way for both the service member and their spouse to overcome difficult experiences and interpersonal episodes that contribute to poor mental health. The communication theory of resilience (Buzzanell, 2010) describes five processes that foster resilience in relationships: crafting normalcy, affirming identity anchors, maintaining, and using communication networks, putting alternative logics to work, and legitimizing negative feelings while foregrounding productive action. These resilience strategies are likely to be particularly relevant for military couples as they construct a life around their military identity, immerse themselves in the military community, and set aside personal feelings and individual pursuits for the good of the mission. Drawing upon this theoretical framework, this study investigated how military couples conceptualize resilience in their relationship and examined how calls to enact resilient communication can act as both a buffer and a burden when it comes to promoting mental health for service members and their partners.
Semi-structured interviews were completed individually with 23 romantic dyads (46 individuals) representing the Army, Navy, and Air Force in both enlisted and officer ranks from seven states, Japan, and South Korea. Participants were recruited from online military support groups and through snowball sampling. We used phronetic iterative analysis (Tracy, 2018) to examine evidence of the five communicative resilience processes within the emergent themes. Finally, we looked at how the enactment of resilience behaviors improved and/or undermined military couples’ experiences of mental health, stress, and well-being. Findings describe military couples using resilience processes to cope with military life. However, both service members and spouses express resilience, increasing stress in relationships. In addition, resilience is discussed as a factor that dissuades couples from discussing or seeking help for mental health concerns. The results are discussed in terms of their alignment with the logic of the communication theory of resilience and other perspectives on coping and resilience, as well as the practical implications for helping military couples cope with mental health struggles arising from the various stressors that accompany a life of military service.