TY - JOUR
T1 - The Well-Being of Australian Service Mothers
AU - Davy, Carol P.
AU - Lorimer, Michelle
AU - McFarlane, Alexander
AU - Hodson, Stephanie
AU - Crompvoets, Samantha
AU - Lawrence-Wood, Ellie
AU - Neuhaus, Susan J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
PY - 2015/10/3
Y1 - 2015/10/3
N2 - In recent years servicewomen with dependent children have for the first time in history been deployed into conflict zones in support of Australian Defence Force operations. This represents a significant social change, and the implications of deployment on the health of these service mothers are not fully understood. Data from women who participated in the Middle East Area of Operations Census study were analyzed to compare the psychological and physical symptoms reported by service mothers with service women who had no dependent children at the time of deploying to Afghanistan and/or Iraq. Of the 921 women who were included in this analysis, 235 had dependent children and 686 had no dependent children (comparison group). Service mothers were significantly older and were more likely to have served in the Air Force than women in the comparison group. Findings demonstrate that serving mothers were not at any significantly higher risk of psychological distress, post-traumatic stress symptoms, alcohol misuse, or reporting of somatic symptoms, than women who had no dependent children. A number of possible explanations for these findings are discussed, including the healthy soldier/mother effect, support from partners and extended family members, and collegial networks.
AB - In recent years servicewomen with dependent children have for the first time in history been deployed into conflict zones in support of Australian Defence Force operations. This represents a significant social change, and the implications of deployment on the health of these service mothers are not fully understood. Data from women who participated in the Middle East Area of Operations Census study were analyzed to compare the psychological and physical symptoms reported by service mothers with service women who had no dependent children at the time of deploying to Afghanistan and/or Iraq. Of the 921 women who were included in this analysis, 235 had dependent children and 686 had no dependent children (comparison group). Service mothers were significantly older and were more likely to have served in the Air Force than women in the comparison group. Findings demonstrate that serving mothers were not at any significantly higher risk of psychological distress, post-traumatic stress symptoms, alcohol misuse, or reporting of somatic symptoms, than women who had no dependent children. A number of possible explanations for these findings are discussed, including the healthy soldier/mother effect, support from partners and extended family members, and collegial networks.
KW - military health
KW - mothers
KW - psychological well-being
KW - somatic symptoms
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84942195367&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/03630242.2015.1050541
DO - 10.1080/03630242.2015.1050541
M3 - Article
SN - 0363-0242
VL - 55
SP - 737
EP - 753
JO - Women and Health
JF - Women and Health
IS - 7
ER -