Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/15599
Title: Psychological Functioning of Partners of Australian Combat Veterans: Contribution of Veterans' PTSD Symptoms and Partners' Caregiving Distress
Contributor(s): MacDonell, Gail  (author); Thorsteinsson, Einar B  (author)orcid ; Bhullar, Navjot  (author)orcid ; Hine, Don W  (author)orcid 
Publication Date: 2014
DOI: 10.1111/ap.12069
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/15599
Abstract: Previous research has found posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in combat veterans to be associated with impaired psychological functioning in their partners. However, little is known about possible mediators of this association. The present study investigated the mediational properties of six dimensions of the revised Partners of Veterans' Distress Scale (MacDonell, Marsh, Hine, & Bhullar, 2010). Participants were 181 female partners of Australian combat veterans, age ranging from 43 and 83 years (M= 60.47, SD= 4.96), who completed measures assessing their caregiving distress levels, dyadic adjustment, mental health, and satisfaction with life. The combat veterans also completed a scale measuring their PTSD symptoms. Our results indicated that higher scores of veterans' PTSD were associated with lower levels of dyadic adjustment, mental health, and satisfaction with life in their partners. Partners reported that distress related to exhaustion and intimacy problems significantly mediated the relationship between veterans' PTSD symptoms and their partners' satisfaction with life, whereas partners' distress associated with intimacy problems was the sole significant mediator for their dyadic adjustment, and exhaustion was the only significant mediator for partners' mental health. Implications for programmes designed to address the significant needs of the partners of combat veterans are discussed.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Australian Psychologist, 49(5), p. 305-312
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Place of Publication: United Kingdom
ISSN: 1742-9544
0005-0067
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 170106 Health, Clinical and Counselling Psychology
170109 Personality, Abilities and Assessment
170113 Social and Community Psychology
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 420403 Psychosocial aspects of childbirth and perinatal mental health
520108 Testing, assessment and psychometrics
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 920408 Health Status (e.g. Indicators of Well-Being)
920499 Public Health (excl. Specific Population Health) not elsewhere classified
920410 Mental Health
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 200407 Health status (incl. wellbeing)
200409 Mental health
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Psychology

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