Exploring the trajectory and correlates of social isolation for veterans across a 6-month period during COVID-19

Abstract

Social isolation is a relevant problem for veterans who are at risk for disengaging from others as a function of transition stress from military life to civilian life, and given high rates of exposure to trauma and psychological distress. Few researchers have examined social isolation in veterans over time, particularly during COVID-19 that led to significant barriers and restrictions on social interactions. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to assess veterans’ experience of social isolation and its mental health and social functioning correlates during a 6-month period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 188 United States veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, who completed a total of four assessments: one every two months for a total duration of six months. Surveys included measures of global mental health and social functioning as indicated by perceived emotional support, quality of marriage, and couple satisfaction. Multilevel modeling was used to assess 1) growth models to determine whether social isolation changed over time and the trajectory of that change (i.e., linear or quadratic); and 2) whether social isolation was related to both concurrent and prospective indicators of mental health and social functioning. All analyses included person mean centered and grand mean centered isolation to assess for within-and between-person effects. Veterans reported a quadratic trajectory in social isolation that decreased slightly and stabilized over time. Findings indicate that higher social isolation, at both the within- and between-person level, was negatively associated with concurrent emotional support, mental health, quality of marriage, and couple satisfaction. However, all prospective effects were nonsignificant at the within-person level. Results suggest although isolation may decrease over time, veterans report worse mental health and social functioning during times when they report higher levels of social isolation compared to themselves and others. Future work is needed to determine if interventions can be applied during those times to prevent or target those negative associations.

Service-Connected Disability and Happiness in Student Veterans: A Parallel Mediation Study of PERMA

“…In addition, rehabilitation counselors may find peer support specialists (Fortuna et al, 2019(Fortuna et al, , 2021 who have knowledge and expertise on working with Veterans with disabilities given Veterans prefer working with their fellow Veterans. Finally, although these data were not collected during the pandemic, we strongly believe that this study provides us promise that improving positive emotions and sense of accomplishment may help student Veterans to buffer negative impact of COVID-19 on persons with disabilities and college students as reported by research (Ibarra-Mejia et al, 2022;Lee et al, 2021;McGuire et al, 2022;Umucu, 2021b;Umucu & Lee, 2020;Umucu, Lee & Bezyak, 2022;Umucu, Reyes, Urkmez, et al, 2022).…”

Evaluating Optimism, Hope, Resilience, Coping Flexibility, Secure Attachment, and PERMA as a Well-Being Model for College Life Adjustment of Student Veterans: A Hierarchical Regression Analysis

“…The PHQ-4 was used to measure depression and anxiety. The internal consistency reliability coefficient was found to be .82 (Löwe et al, 2010). Items of the PHQ-4 and of the subscales of the ICP are negatively worded, so negatively worded items were reverse coded.…”

“…Social support is an important protective factor for student veterans as they adjust to college life. Research revealed that veterans may experience social isolation (e.g., Grenawalt, Lu et al, 2022;McGuire et al, 2022). Similarly, student veterans may experience interpersonal problems due to difficulties related to their nontraditional student status, health problems, and transition to college life (Barry et al, 2014;.…”

The impact of army resilience training on the self-stigma of seeking help in student veterans with and without disabilities.

“…Meredith et al (2011) had advocated for strengthening policies to clearly define the factors within building resilience and provide guidance on program implementation. We believe positive psychology factors may play an important role in reducing stigma and improve overall quality of life and well-being in veterans, including student veterans with and without disabilities (McGuire et al, 2022; Umucu, Lo, et al, 2022; Umucu, Villegas, et al, 2021).…”