The effect of PTSD and combat level on Vietnam veterans' perceptions of child behavior and marital adjustment

Abstract

This study empirically investigated the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and combat level on Vietnam veterans' perceptions of their children's behavior, as well as its effects on their marital adjustment. Results indicated that the predictor variables of PTSD and combat level together explained 33.6% of the variance in perceived child behavior problems (p < .001) and 51.8% of the variance in marital adjustment (p < .001). In addition, PTSD and combat level, when observed together, reliably predicted internalizing and externalizing behavior problems in addition to four specific areas of marital adjustment. When observed individually, however, it was shown that child behavior problems and marital adjustment were predicted primarily by PTSD, rather than combat level.