Associations between Depressive Symptoms and Relationship Satisfaction among Military Couples after Deployments

Abstract

Research traditionally has focused on associations between Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms and couple relationship satisfaction in military populations. Less research has been conducted on other mental health problems, particularly depression, given the high comorbidity between depression and PTSD. The purpose of the present study was to understand the associations between depressive symptoms and couple relationship satisfaction among post-deployed military couples, after controlling for combat exposure and life event stress. The actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) was used to measure inter and intra-spousal associations among 228 couples. Men had experienced at least one deployment to recent conflicts in the Middle East. The results show both actor effects and partner effects for negative associations between depressive symptoms and relationship satisfaction. Moreover, consistent with the Military Family Stress model, the results show that depressive symptoms are uniquely associated with relationship satisfaction. The results of the current study highlight the importance of focusing on depressive symptoms in both intervention and prevention programs for military families, especially for members of the National Guard and Reserves (NG/R).