Protective Factors in Families: Themes From a Socioecological Study of Australian Defence Force Families Experiencing Parental Deployment

Rogers, Marg

doi:10.1177/2158244017706711

Cited by 10 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(76 reference statements)

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“…Deployed parents reported feeling like they were not really able to coparent while away even if they maintained communication with their family. Reconciling different needs with regard to the timing and purpose of communication proved challenging for many military families as they coparented long-distance (Rogers-Baber, 2017). Parents also revealed the complexity of communication, including the crucial role of home front parents in facilitating or limiting the deployed parents’ access to their children.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, parents may put in place family routines (Fiese, 2006) that can be maintained regardless of the service member’s status in the deployment cycle. Rituals that reinforce family cohesiveness and flexibility, and the enduring importance of an absent parent, can strengthen a young child’s sense of security and safety even when a parent is deployed (Acker, Nicholson, & DeVoe, 2019; Rogers-Baber, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Coparenting across the Deployment Cycle: Observations from Military Families with Young Children

DeVoe

Ross

Spencer

et al. 2019

Journal of Family Issues

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Contemporary service members and their partners have adapted their coparenting to respond to the specific transitions and disruptions associated with wartime deployment cycles and evolving child development. This qualitative study draws upon interviews with service member and home front parents of very young children to characterize their coparenting experiences throughout the deployment cycle. Parents described varied approaches as they considered their children’s developmental capacities, the fluidity of demands throughout deployment, and the service member’s well-being during reintegration. A common theme was the key role of home front parents in facilitating the service member–child relationship through communication and maintaining the presence of the deployed parent in the child’s everyday life. Reintegration challenges included redistribution of coparenting roles, the pacing of the service member into family roles, and concerns related to the returning parent’s distress. Study findings highlight areas of coparenting throughout the deployment cycle that can be supported though prevention and intervention efforts.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coparenting across the Deployment Cycle: Observations from Military Families with Young Children

DeVoe

Ross

Spencer

et al. 2019

Journal of Family Issues

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“…Despite a lack of awareness of services, some supports provided by the ADF act as a protective factor for families 26 . These can include gatherings, such as Unit family days, pastoral and social work support, funded communication with the member whilst deployed, subsidised housing and a few children's resources, mainly for 8‐ to 12‐year‐olds 26 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parental perceptions of social and emotional well‐being of young children from Australian military families

Rogers,

Johnson,

Coffey

et al. 2023

Australian J Rural Health

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IntroductionMany Australian Defence Force (ADF) and Veteran families are affected by the stressors of Defence family life, including frequent and prolonged parental deployments, and frequent relocations.ObjectiveTo address a gap in information about Defence and Veteran (hereafter Defence) parents' knowledge, confidence and resources to support their young children's well‐being and build their resilience.DesignThis study used a mixed methods design to explore Defence parent's perceptions of their young children's (aged 2–8 years) social and emotional well‐being and understanding of their children's responses to unique stressors as well as their confidence in providing support. Data from 41 parents were available.FindingsOverall, parents reported positive well‐being evaluation of their children. However, just over a third of parents also reported that their children rarely cope well on two indicators combined (adapting to new situations and sharing negative emotions with others). Significantly, more than half of the parents (61%) were only partially confident in their ability to assist their children to cope with unique stressors in military families. Qualitative data provided further insights into children's struggle with relocations and parental absence and the challenges parents face in supporting them. Parents reported having limited access to effective age‐ and culturally appropriate resources to support their young children.DiscussionIn a first‐of‐its kind study, we found that Australian Defence parents reported their young children were coping on most of the key well‐being indicators. However, awareness of currently available supports for children remains a barrier as well as access to contextualised, age‐ and culturally appropriate resources are lacking.ConclusionThere is a need for access to free, quality, online, research‐based Australian resources to support young children from Defence families, especially for those living in regional and rural locations and are less likely to have access to mental health and other specialist supports.

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“…Research about military families with young children is limited across the globe, but particularly so outside the US (which has a strong military culture), and even more so within Australia. There is an urgent need for research into the unique issues experienced by ADF families (Rogers-Baber, 2017;McFarlane, 2009;Siebler, 2009). There is also 'a distinct lack of Australian data about the impact of deployment on families', as found by Baber (2016, p. 142).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International Programs and Resources to Support Children from Military Families: A Review

Rogers¹,

Bible²,

Johnson³

et al. 2022

iejee

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Parental deployment and frequent relocations exert significant stress on children from military families. This stress can be extremely disruptive to young children's social, cognitive and behavioural development. It can result in negative social, emotional, and physical responses. There are a broad range of programs, resources, and services available mainly in the US, but also internationally. The programs endeavour to mitigate the impacts of military life on young children by providing support to families. This paper explores the programs for families with young children and the need for culturally and age-appropriate resources. It also discusses how the Early Childhood Defence Programs (ECDP) project is responding to this need by developing three free, online Australian early childhood programs for parents, family workers and educators. This scoping review of currently available programs and resources will determine how the project, and others wanting to support children from military families, can best address this need.

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Protective Factors in Families: Themes From a Socioecological Study of Australian Defence Force Families Experiencing Parental Deployment

Cited by 10 publications

References 46 publications

Coparenting across the Deployment Cycle: Observations from Military Families with Young Children

Coparenting across the Deployment Cycle: Observations from Military Families with Young Children

Parental perceptions of social and emotional well‐being of young children from Australian military families

International Programs and Resources to Support Children from Military Families: A Review

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