Cederbaum Julie A, Wilcox Sherrie L, Sullivan Kathrine, Lucas Carrie, Schuyler Ashley
1 School of Social Work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
2 Center for Innovation and Research on Military Veterans and Families, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Public Health Rep. 2017 Jan/Feb;132(1):85-92. doi: 10.1177/0033354916679984. Epub 2016 Dec 12.
Although many service members successfully cope with exposure to stress and traumatic experiences, others have symptoms of depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety; contextual factors may account for the variability in outcomes from these experiences. This work sought to understand mechanisms through which social support influences the mental health of service members and whether dyadic functioning mediates this relationship.
We collected cross-sectional data as part of a larger study conducted in 2013; 321 military personnel who had at least 1 deployment were included in these analyses. Surveys were completed online; we collected data on demographic characteristics, social support, mental health measures (depression, PTSD, and anxiety), and dyadic functioning. We performed process modeling through mediation analysis.
The direct effects of social support on the mental health of military personnel were limited; however, across all types of support networks, greater social support was significantly associated with better dyadic functioning. Dyadic functioning mediated the relationships between social support and depression/PTSD only when social support came from nonmilitary friends or family; dyadic functioning mediated social support and anxiety only when support came from family. We found no indirect effects of support from military peers or military leaders.
Findings here highlight the need to continue to explore ways in which social support, particularly from family and nonmilitary-connected peers, can bolster healthy intimate partner relationships and, in turn, improve the well-being of military service members who are deployed.
尽管许多军人能够成功应对压力和创伤经历，但其他人会出现抑郁、创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）和焦虑症状；背景因素可能解释了这些经历结果的变异性。这项研究旨在了解社会支持影响军人心理健康的机制，以及二元关系功能是否介导了这种关系。
作为2013年进行的一项更大规模研究的一部分，我们收集了横断面数据；这些分析纳入了至少有过一次部署经历的321名军事人员。调查通过在线方式完成；我们收集了关于人口统计学特征、社会支持、心理健康指标（抑郁、PTSD和焦虑）以及二元关系功能的数据。我们通过中介分析进行过程建模。
社会支持对军事人员心理健康的直接影响有限；然而，在所有类型的支持网络中，更多的社会支持与更好的二元关系功能显著相关。仅当社会支持来自非军人朋友或家人时，二元关系功能介导了社会支持与抑郁/PTSD之间的关系；仅当支持来自家人时，二元关系功能介导了社会支持与焦虑之间的关系。我们未发现来自军事同伴或军事领导的支持存在间接影响。
此处的研究结果凸显了继续探索社会支持，尤其是来自家人和非军事关联同伴的社会支持，如何能够加强健康的亲密伴侣关系，进而改善被部署军人福祉的方法的必要性。
