Reference:
Southwell, K. H., & MacDermid Wadsworth, S. M. (2016). The many faces of military families: Unique features of the lives of female service members. Military Medicine, 181, 70-79. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-15-00193
Summary:
Female service members’ family structures are very different from traditional military families with a male service member. Using a mixed-methods study, MFRI Graduate Research Assistant Kenona Southwell and director Shelley MacDermid Wadsworth explored the structural differences in these types of families, reviewing many factors such as demographics, empirical evidence and the 2010 wave of the Military Family Life Project. Southwell and MacDermid Wadsworth noted significant structural differences in male and female service members’ families and perceptions and experiences of military spouses.
In order to gain an understanding of the influence of women’s service on their family functioning, in-depth telephone interviews were conducted with 20 civilian husbands residing in 11 states around the U.S. Southwell and MacDermid Wadsworth discovered several key findings for service men and women:
- Service women had higher rates or remarriage and divorce than service men.
- Women were more likely than men to be part of nontraditional family forms.
- Civilian husbands of female service members reported lower marital satisfaction, less support from the community, and less satisfaction with the military lifestyle than military wives reported.
- Husbands’ accounts indicated that their families experienced both benefits and challenges from wives’ service.
The article concluded that the families female service members faced major challenges. Implications of benefits and challenges for women’s service for their families are further discussed.