Effects of Deployments on Spouses of Military Personnel
Abstract
Over 1,000,000 service members were deployed away from their families in the first 5 years since the start of the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan and Iraq, and over 350,000 service members experienced two or more deployments. Although deployments disrupt the contribution of service members to household production, little evidence exist about the effect of deployments on spouses. This dissertation examines an effect of deployment on spousal labor force participation and household wellbeing. Combining administrative pay records with responses to surveys of active duty personnel, I find that deployment reduces spousal labor force participation by 2.8 percentage points. This reaction varies by the age of the youngest child in the family. Deployment reduces spousal labor force participation by 4.9 percentage points in families with children under age 6. I also find that spouses decrease their labor force participation several months before service members are actually deployed, and return to the labor force several months after service members are actually deployed, and return to the labor force several months after service members return from deployment. I a slo find that deployment increases reenlistment rates. Those soldiers who were deployed since September 11, 2001 are more likely to stay in the military based on the spousal taste for employment. Those spouses who have a high taste for a career and perceive that military life may impose constraints on their job opportunities encourage service members to leave the military.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA487634
Entities
People
- Bogdan Savych
Organizations
- RAND Corporation