TY - JOUR
T1 - Broadening the focus in supporting reintegrating iraq and Afghanistan veterans
T2 - Six key domains of functioning
AU - Sherman, Michelle D.
AU - Larsen, Jessica
AU - Borden, Lynne M.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 American Psychological Association.
PY - 2015/10/1
Y1 - 2015/10/1
N2 - As the major ground troop presence in the Middle East is reduced, it is time to reflect, maximize lessons learned, and look forward to what lies ahead for the nearly 2.6 million service members of the United States military who have deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn. A systematic review of the literature on postdeployment functioning of Iraq and Afghanistan troops was conducted. Findings are described and contextualized in terms of service members' ongoing strengths, needs, and challenges. The corpus of research on deployed personnel indicates that service members demonstrate resilience in the face of war-related stressors. However, postdeployment impairment in 6 functional domains emerged in the literature review, including mental health, social and role functioning, relationship functioning and family life, spirituality, physical health, and financial well-being. Although risk factors and future trajectories vary across these domains, psychiatric difficulties are a consistent predictor of a worsened course. Implications for clinical practice are described based on the review findings. To promote wellbeing in the years ahead, it is important that service members are supported in their various roles (such as in the classroom, the workforce, and the family). In addition, routine assessment of functioning across domains is highly recommended for postdeployment service members.
AB - As the major ground troop presence in the Middle East is reduced, it is time to reflect, maximize lessons learned, and look forward to what lies ahead for the nearly 2.6 million service members of the United States military who have deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn. A systematic review of the literature on postdeployment functioning of Iraq and Afghanistan troops was conducted. Findings are described and contextualized in terms of service members' ongoing strengths, needs, and challenges. The corpus of research on deployed personnel indicates that service members demonstrate resilience in the face of war-related stressors. However, postdeployment impairment in 6 functional domains emerged in the literature review, including mental health, social and role functioning, relationship functioning and family life, spirituality, physical health, and financial well-being. Although risk factors and future trajectories vary across these domains, psychiatric difficulties are a consistent predictor of a worsened course. Implications for clinical practice are described based on the review findings. To promote wellbeing in the years ahead, it is important that service members are supported in their various roles (such as in the classroom, the workforce, and the family). In addition, routine assessment of functioning across domains is highly recommended for postdeployment service members.
KW - Community reintegration
KW - PTSD
KW - Reintegration
KW - Service member
KW - Veteran
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84943578387&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84943578387&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1037/pro0000043
DO - 10.1037/pro0000043
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84943578387
SN - 0735-7028
VL - 46
SP - 355
EP - 365
JO - Professional Psychology: Research and Practice
JF - Professional Psychology: Research and Practice
IS - 5
ER -