Psychological Functioning of Partners of Australian Combat Veterans: Contribution of Veterans' PTSD Symptoms and Partners' Caregiving Distress

Title
Psychological Functioning of Partners of Australian Combat Veterans: Contribution of Veterans' PTSD Symptoms and Partners' Caregiving Distress
Publication Date
2014
Author(s)
MacDonell, Gail
Thorsteinsson, Einar B
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2065-1989
Email: ethorste@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:ethorste
Bhullar, Navjot
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1616-6094
Email: nbhulla2@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:nbhulla2
Hine, Don W
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3905-7026
Email: dhine@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:dhine
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Place of publication
United Kingdom
DOI
10.1111/ap.12069
UNE publication id
une:15835
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.
Link
Citation
Australian Psychologist, 49(5), p. 305-312
ISSN
1742-9544
0005-0067
Start page
305
End page
312

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