Relationship Between the Soldier in the Military Unit and the Military Family
Abstract
The overall purpose of this research was to explore the interrelationships between the soldier's behavior within the military organization and the military family's patterns of adjustment. The specific objectives were: 1. To examine sources of stress within the two environments - the military unit and the family. 2. To elucidate coping modes of the family as a unit. 3. To develop typology of 'families living in peace' and 'families living in struggle' with the military-vs.-family conflict. One hundred families of military personnel from the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) comprised the sample for this study. A multi-method approach was applied on the entire family, during a weekend retreat in a relaxed environment. In-depth interviews and questionnaires provided the main tools for data collection. The results show that the military-vs.-family conflict is rudimentary and has far-reaching consequences for various aspects in family life. The major difficulties of the military families encompass: a. A negative carry-over of the military service into the family life; b. The experience of intense stress (especially by the wives) due to husband's frequent absence, which is reflected in interference with planning family events, burden of the family exclusively on the wife's shoulders, loneliness of the military wife, and the husband's frustration due to lack of involvement in raising children; c. Financial difficulties; d. Frequent mobility of the family, that presents difficulties for the children by imposing recurring adjustment to a new social and school environment, and poses obstacles to the wife's career.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA203353
Entities
People
- Helena Syna
- Reuven Gal