Reference:
Lester, P., Stein, J., Saltzman, W., Woodward, K., MacDermid Wadsworth, S., Milburn, N. G., Mogil, C., & Beardslee, W. (2013). Psychological health of military children: Longitudinal evaluation of family-centered prevention to enhance family resilience. Military Medicine, 178, 838-845. doi:10.7205/MILMED-D-12-00502
Summary:
This study evaluates the impact of Families Overcoming Under Stress Family Resilience Training (FOCUS), on the psychological adjustment of military children. The two primary goals of this article are to understand the relationships of distress among family members and to determine pathways of program impact on child adjustment. Data analysis was conducted with in two follow-up assessments. Standardized measures included service member and civilian parental distress, child adjustment and family functioning. Distress was significant among the service member parent, civilian parent and children. FOCUS improved family functioning, which in turn significantly reduced child distress at follow-up. The findings in this article underscore the public health potential of family-centered prevention for military families and suggest areas for future research.