This week I chose to focus on research studies currently being doing on military families, specifically children in military families and the impact multiple deployments and reintegrations have on these families. Right now, 42% of people in military families are from birth to five years of age (Williams & Mulrooney, 2012) and it is an important group to do studies on. The two articles that I included below I got from one of the newsletters I signed up for in my last course from the Zero to Three website: Coming Together Around Military Families.
The reason that I chose this group of people for my focus this week is because my boyfriend has been in the Army National Guard for almost 12 years and we have been through two deployments together: The first was six months in Iraq and six months in Afghanistan followed by the second, which came about 15 months later, to Egpyt for a year. Through his service in the military, I have become involved in the Family Readiness Group for his unit, which is a volunteer group that meets to essentially take care of soldiers and their families. I love being a part of this group and I have met so many wonderful people and families through my involement over the last four years. America is facing new issues with so many Guard and Reserve soldiers having to face multiple deployments and not being attached to a base like active duty soliders are. Deployments are hard, but intergrations are just as hard and it is a great stressor on families and children when these events are happening. I was so happy to find these two articles because I think we are taking the right steps in learning how to help these families and the unique issues they are faced with.Spotlight on: Innovations in Resources for Veteran Families
A recent study in Chicago, Illinois has focused on understanding the current services available for Veteran families with very young children, as well as identifying any gaps in services. Several key issues have emerged from this effort. To start, providers note that it is critical to ask all families, “Are you or is any member of your family military connected? Have you or a family member experienced a combat deployment?” Lack of awareness of families’ Veteran status impacts their engagement in needed services. Secondly, a “system of care” approach is critical to support the needs of both Veterans and their families with young children. As part of this, a method to assess services as “Veteran friendly” would be helpful. Third, civilian human service agencies may benefit from additional training and support on the needs of Veterans and their families, as these agencies will be the primary source of care for Service members transitioning out of the military. This study was funded by the Prince Charitable Trusts of Chicago. Further work is planned to help build a city-wide strategy for supporting young children from Veteran families.
-I chose this study because it was based in my home state of Illinois and it is filled with important information. A lot of times, schools and daycares may not know children are a part of a military family because there are Reserve and Guard soldiers that work out in the community each day. It is nice to see their sacrifices being recognized and studies being done to find ways to assist these families.
In March, 2012 the University of Southern California’s Center for Innovation and Research (USC-CIR), housed in the USC School of Social Work, published a policy brief titledIncreasing Understanding of Infants and Young Children in Military Families through Focused Research. This brief, written by ZERO TO THREE Military Family Projects Director Dorinda Williams and Assistant Director Kathy Mulrooney, highlights the current research on military family issues, particularly around deployment and reintegration, and their impact on young children. The report concludes with a series of recommendations for researchers and policy makers so that they may better understand and support the needs of military families, especially on issues that profoundly impact young children and their development. To read the full CIR Policy Brief, click here.
-I love this policy brief because it really talks about so many issues that military famlies face, especially those that have gone through multiple deployments. PTSD is a known thing that happens to soliders, but all soldiers come back and need to be reintegrated into families and their families need to be reintegrated back to them and it is hard process. I love that these two ladies are leading the way in creating a research study about these issues and hopefully more studies will happen because of this.
Reference
zerotothree.org
July 2012 enewsletter-Coming Together Around Military Families
Hi Amber,
ReplyDeleteAs I think I've mentioned before, my older brother is Air Force Retired. My brother got married his first full year in the service, and subsequently had 3 children. For the most part his family travel with him when he was reassigned to new bases every 4 years. This included bases in and out of the U.S. His children grew up moving every 4 years or so, saying good bye to friends, and having to re-assimilate to new environments. When it was not them who were leaving it was their friends... always good bye. Interspersed in all of these station locations, were the TDY's where my bother would ship out, leaving his family behind for months at a time. This kind of life can be hard on any family, especially in the area of attachment and consistency. I am so glad that someone of your caliber is available and interested in this kind of research. My brother's family came out of the experience incredibly connected to one another, but that is because they put forth a lot of effort. Every moment they were not at work, they were doing an activity together...usually putting on the next musical theater show in whatever local theater there was available. They also participated in lots of Medieval Reenactment Festivals... making their own very elaborate costumes and participating in events. I think that these activities played a significant role in holding the family together.
Dot-Through my own experience and with other families, I think deployments, TDY's, etc can either bring you closer together or completely tear your family apart. Shawn (my boyfriend) said there is almost a 50% divorce rate right now for officers in the military because of the amount of long and short term seperation. It makes me sad, but the military life isn't for everyone. We're lucky because we never have to move anywhere and no matter where he has to go, I always have my friends and family here and having a support group is huge. One thing I can say about military families is you really learn how to enjoy the little things and spending together doing things you love (like theatre shows you're family loved) because you never know when the next separation will come. You learn not to sweat the small things and just enjoy each others company.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting toppic that you have picked. Its a topic that can be overlooked. Thank you for opening my eyes to something different.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great topic. I can't imagine what some of these family have to face during times of deployment. Families need help during these times especially young children. Great topic and enjoyed reading your post.
ReplyDeleteAmber, you are a strong woman, I can not imagine a love one being deployed and away from home for ssuch a long time. This is a great post and very informative.
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