Military Dependents Research Articles

Easing Transitions of Military Dependents into Hawaii Public Schools

Over 15,000 military dependent students attend Hawaii public schools, about 8% of the total studentpopulation. The transition to Hawaii schools has been identified by many military familiesas a challenge and one more difficult than other transitions their families have made. A generallyacknowledged negative perception of Hawaii public schools among the military communityworldwide does nothing to ease this transition, especially when schooling ranks near the top ofmilitary families’ quality-of-life issues. Other factors that have made the transition difficult includecultural differences and some local school policies. This study draws on the following: federallyfunded research and programs to ease school transitions for military dependent students,five years of customer satisfaction surveys done with military families in Hawaii, and descriptionsof the numerous programs and activities underway in the state. These programs and activitiesare sponsored jointly by the military and the Department of Education to welcome militarydependent students into the public schools and provide them with a quality education. From abroad overview of the situation for military dependent students worldwide, this study hones in onefforts in Hawaii and the connections to the research literature including Invitational Education(IE). The study includes a description of the prevalence of IE at the University of Hawaii and itscongruence with Hawaiian values as well as with the research on school connectedness that underliesmuch of the national-level effort at easing military student transitions.

Understand the new generation of student veterans

Monteigne Long's journey to working with student veterans began as a military spouse. Today, Long is the Assistant Director at the Office of Veteran Services at Texas A&M University. At TAMU, Long helps oversee the programming for more than 400 student veterans across 11 institutions, along with more than 7,000 military dependents.

Incidence and Implications of Twin Gestational Surrogacy at Two Large U.S. Military Hospitals: A 10-Year Retrospective Cohort Study.

Individuals seeking a gestational surrogate often turn to U.S. military dependents due to favorable insurance coverage. Surrogate pregnancies, including multiple gestations, may be at increased risk for adverse outcomes. The objectives of this study were to determine the incidence of surrogacy in a twin population conceived by assisted reproductive technology (ART), assess the impact on the military healthcare system, and determine if there is an increased rate of complications in twin surrogacy pregnancies. We conducted a 10-year retrospective cohort study of ART-conceived twin gestations at two military hospitals. Charts were reviewed for demographic data, surrogacy status, and obstetric complications. Number of prenatal visits and formal sonograms were tabulated for surrogate pregnancies. Complication rates were compared between groups using Fisher's exact test. Over the 10-year period, 36 of the 249 pregnancies were identified as gestational surrogates, equating to a rate of 14.4%. Surrogate mothers were younger than non-surrogates (29.58 years vs. 33.11 years, P < .001). Care of surrogate pregnancies required a total of 306 prenatal visits and 98 formal ultrasounds. The incidence of gestational diabetes was higher among surrogates compared to other ART-conceived twin pregnancies at 27.8% vs. 12.2% (P < .05), while other complications did not significantly differ. Approximately one in seven ART-conceived twin gestations were surrogacy pregnancies, requiring significant clinical resources. The incidence of gestational diabetes was higher among surrogate gestations.

The Impact of Brief Interventions on Functioning Among those Demonstrating Anxiety, Depressive, and Adjustment Disorder Symptoms in Primary Care: The Effectiveness of the Primary Care Behavioral Health (PCBH) Model.

Limited scalability combined with limited opportunities for patients to receive evidence-based interventions in traditional behavioral health treatment models for anxiety and depression creates a gap in access to adequate care. Primary Care Behavioral Health (PCBH) is one model of treatment in which behavioral health consultants (BHC) work directly within primary care settings, but there is limited evidence regarding the effectiveness of this model of care. The functional outcomes and appointment characteristics of Beneficiaries (N = 5402) within the military healthcare system were assessed. The study sample was predominately Caucasian, female, military dependents seen for 2 to 4 appointments. A reliable change index revealed that 17.2% showed reliable improvement and 2.4% showed reliable deterioration (p < .05). Of individuals with a severe Behavioral Health Measure-20 score at baseline, 81.5% showed some improvement at their final appointment, with 33% demonstrating reliable improvement. A mixed model analysis was used to determine the predictive value of appointment characteristics. All relations were significant (p < .001), except the between-subjects effect of appointment duration. Appointment duration revealed individuals reported worse functioning at the start of atypically long appointments. Individuals with generally longer intervals between appointments reported worse functioning, but an atypically long interval predicted better functioning at the following appointment. As it relates to number of appointments, individuals with more total appointments reported worse functioning outcomes, with generally better functioning across appointments. Overall, these data support the effectiveness of time-limited care provided through the PCBH model.

Knowledge and Attitudes of Lifestyle Medicine-Based Care in a Military Community.

The Department of Defense spends more than $3 billion annually on medical costs of lifestyle-related morbidity. Military service members and veterans engage in unhealthy behaviors at a higher rate than the civilian population. Lifestyle medicine may mitigate lifestyle-related chronic diseases and increase medical readiness in the U.S. Military. However, patients' perspectives in a military community regarding a lifestyle medicine-based approach to health care have not been studied. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge and attitudes of and interest in lifestyle medicine-based care within a military community. Following exempt study determination from the Madigan Army Medical Center Human Protections Office (Reference No. 220092), a prospective, cross-sectional, mixed-methods survey study was conducted from September 2020 to January 2021. Volunteer subjects, including active duty service members, National Guard/Reserves service members, and military dependents, were recruited to complete the anonymous survey while seeking care at five military clinics on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The study's outcome measures were the overall level of awareness of lifestyle medicine, ranked level of importance of seven core lifestyle domains, the level of interest in seeking care from a lifestyle medicine practitioner, and the preferred lifestyle medicine care delivery setting. Kruskal-Wallis analyses of variance were conducted for categorical outcome variables. Mean composite scores were calculated for lifestyle domain rankings. A total of 623 respondents completed the survey with a 62.3% response rate. The majority of respondents (89.7%) lacked definitive knowledge of the field of lifestyle medicine. Food/nutrition and sleep were ranked the highest of all lifestyle domains to include in a healthcare approach in the overall sample and across all subgroups. Quitting smoking and alcohol use were ranked the lowest of importance overall and across all subgroups. The majority of respondents (65.7%) reported it was extremely or very important that lifestyle is part of the healthcare discussion with their provider. Of 614 responses, 77.6% of respondents expressed interest in a lifestyle medicine-based approach to health care, with 40.1% indicating they were extremely or very interested in this approach. A direct correlation was noted between education levels and level of interest in lifestyle medicine. Many respondents selected their primary care provider (34.6%) or a lifestyle medicine practitioner embedded in their primary care clinic (26.1%) as their preferred method of lifestyle medicine provision. A higher smoking rate was demonstrated in service members in combat arms occupational specialties. Despite an overall low level of awareness of lifestyle medicine, most respondents expressed interest in a lifestyle medicine approach to health care, with food/nutrition and sleep ranked as the most important domains. Lower levels of education may be a potential barrier to patient willingness to engage in lifestyle medicine care. Service members in combat arms occupational specialties may represent a potential target population for smoking cessation interventions. Further research with a larger sample more proportionately inclusive of all military service branches is needed.

Associations of Low-Inflammatory Dietary Patterns With Psychological Health and Wellbeing During Weight Loss in Military Family Dependents

ObjectivesEmerging evidence suggests that anti-inflammatory dietary patterns may improve depression, stress, and quality of life. Similar benefits are observed during weight loss interventions; however, the effect of combining these dietary patterns with weight loss is not clear. We evaluated the association between dietary inflammation and measures of psychological health in female military dependents with overweight and obesity during a behavioral weight loss intervention. MethodsParticipants (n = 120) received a 6-month intervention recommending dietary patterns with an anti-inflammatory profile. An energy-adjusted dietary inflammatory index (DII) score was calculated from 28 food components collected using 3 interviewer-administered multiple-pass 24-hour recalls at each study time point. A negative score indicates a lower-inflammatory dietary pattern, and a positive score indicates a pro-inflammatory pattern. Self-reported symptoms of depression, stress, general health, vitality, and psychological quality of life were measured by validated questionnaires. Multivariable linear mixed models were used to assess the association between 6-month changes in DII and each outcome and were adjusted for age, ethnicity, military rank of spouse, body weight, and physical activity. ResultsOn average, females were 42.2 ± 11.8 years old with a body mass index of 34.9 ± 6.4 kg/m2. The average DII score was 0.07 (range: –4.3, 3.0) at baseline. Six-month improvements in DII scores (i.e., for a 1-unit reduction) were associated with fewer self-reported symptoms of depression (β: –0.87; 95% confidence interval: –1.43, –0.31; P = 0.003) and stress (–0.85; –1.44, –0.26; P = 0.005), as well as higher general health (0.57; 0.23, 0.91; P = 0.001), vitality (0.45; 0.12, 0.77; P = 0.008), and psychological quality of life (0.33; 0.11, 0.55; P = 0.004). No significant associations between weight loss or physical activity and any outcome were observed in these models that included the DII. ConclusionsAnti-inflammatory dietary patterns are associated with beneficial effects on a range of psychological health and wellbeing measures independent of weight loss. Funding SourcesJean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging Doctoral Scholarship; Department of Defense (DoD) grant W81XWH-14–2-0005 (SBR). Author views do not reflect official DoD or Army policy.

Exploring the library experiences of military dependents

College and university library programs and services for military-affiliated populations are typically aimed at student veterans and service members and not their spouses or children who are also students. However, librarians organizing programming for student veterans and service members often receive questions about also including other military-affiliated groups on campus, such as ROTC cadets or military dependents, the spouses/children of veterans who are using educational benefits, in their programming audience. This study explores the potential relevance of targeted library support for veterans and service members to military dependents. Findings suggest that incoming dependents' demographics and experiences with libraries are similar to those of other first time in college students. When designing programming and services for student veterans and service members, librarians should think critically about whether those programs and services are also appropriate for military dependents before expanding the target audience.

Health Trends in Eighteen Year Old Military Dependents from 2008-2018

Health Trends in Eighteen Year Old Military Dependents from 2008-2018

The Impact of Mammography Screening Guideline Changes in a Universally Insured Population.

Background: The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) modified breast cancer screening guidelines in November 2009. The impact has been studied among privately and Medicare insured populations, but not among universally insured women. Materials and Methods: This study compared the proportion of TRICARE beneficiaries aged 40-64 receiving mammograms from fiscal years 2006 to 2015 using an interrupted time series analysis to determine the impact of the 2009 USPSTF guideline changes. Stratified analyses evaluated differences by age (ages 40-49, 50-64), race, care setting, beneficiary type, and military status. Results: The proportion of women receiving mammograms increased from October 2005 through September 2009. A small, but significant decrease of 65-66 fewer women screened per 10,000 occurred in the first quarter of 2010 (October 1 to December 31) following the screening guideline update publication. The proportion screened then remained unchanged through 2015. Comparative analysis revealed no differences in impact between age groups, blacks and whites, or military dependents and active-duty/retirees. Conclusions: This study determined that the USPSTF guideline updates had a small, but immediate and lasting impact that was not different across age groups, beneficiary type, or race. No racial disparities in the proportion screened or in the impact of the guideline change were noted in our universally insured population.

Weight-Based Teasing and Metabolic Syndrome Components among Adolescent Military Dependents at Risk for Adult Obesity.

Background: Among adults, weight stigma is associated with markers of poor cardiometabolic health. Although weight-based teasing (WBT) is common among youth with high body weight, few studies have examined its associations with cardiometabolic markers. Owing to unique stressors (e.g., parental deployment and frequent moves), military-dependent youth may be at particularly high risk for obesity, WBT, and poor cardiometabolic health. We, therefore, assessed associations between WBT and cardiometabolic health markers among adolescent military dependents presenting for a weight gain prevention trial. Methods: Participants underwent fasting phlebotomy; had fasting weight, height, and waist circumference measured; and completed assessments of WBT, anxiety, and loss-of-control eating. Multivariate analysis of covariance, adjusting for relevant covariates including demographics and body composition, was used to examine differences in metabolic syndrome (MetS) components (waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose) between youth reporting WBT and youth reporting no WBT. Bootstrapped models examined whether WBT mediated the relationship between BMIz and MetS components. Results: Data from 142 youth (57.7% female; 14.4 ± 1.6 years; 51.2% non-Hispanic White, 20.9% non-Hispanic Black; BMIz: 1.9 ± 0.4) were analyzed. WBT was not significantly associated with any MetS component. Relationships were observed between BMIz and all MetS components (except systolic blood pressure and glucose), although WBT did not significantly mediate these relationships (p's > 0.05). Conclusions: This study did not find support for a relationship between WBT and MetS components in adolescent military dependents at risk for adult obesity. Prospective research is needed to determine whether associations between WBT and adverse cardiometabolic outcomes emerge primarily in adulthood.

Countering Threats in Space Through International Cooperation

The U.S. military's dependence on inherently vulnerable space assets creates an incentive for its adversaries to target U.S. space systems. Establishing mission assurance through resilience and reconstitution is a critical challenge for the United States. One of the U.S. approaches to strengthening resilience and reconstituting space systems is to engage in international cooperation with its allies. Such cooperation can effectively improve three elements of resilience: disaggregation, distribution, and diversification. International joint development of satellites with allies would also improve the reconstitution of U.S. space systems, which involves rebuilding these systems after damage by adversaries. These efforts could benefit both the United States and its allies through imposing quantitative and political costs on adversaries for attacking U.S. space systems. Several issues prevent close cooperation. Considering these benefits and obstacles, establishing space systems, especially an SSA(Space Situational Awareness) satellite constellation, with allies could be an effective undertaking for the United States. The United States has an advantage compared with its adversaries as it possesses a number of strong allies and partners; thus, the United States should maximize this advantage to improve the resilience and reconstitution of space systems.

Deployments to Diplomas: An Examination of Academic Motivation among Military Dependents using Self-Determination Theory

Deployments to Diplomas: An Examination of Academic Motivation among Military Dependents using Self-Determination Theory

Indicators for Sustainable Redevelopment of Cultural Landscapes — Huangpu Veterans Quarter in Taiwan

Overdeveloped land, misused resources, limited and fast development landscape in urban Taiwan, are problems and challenges government continuously facing and avoiding; Re-utilizing underdeveloped and limited landscape in Taiwan is an important subject. Taiwan Kaohsiung obtains and preserves the largest Military Dependents’ Village (MDV) landscape in Taiwan; an important, unique, and valuable historic cultural landscape affiliate historical, military and ethnic group living culture village. This study reviewed sustainable development and village preserve literature, and propose re-development structural framework of MDV through two-stage experts’ questionnaire survey. The first stage utilized the Fuzzy Delphi Method, which focuses on impact factors, and the second, the AHP Method, deals with performance factors. The results indicate that the key impacts on the cultural landscape sustainability redevelopment strategies for Huangpu MDV were its cultural value, historic site, and maintenance management.

Материальное обеспечение членов семей канадских добровольцев в годы Первой мировой войны

The article analyzes the Canadian government policy of social protection and support for soldiers’ dependents during World War I. The description of events begins when Canada entered the war (August 4, 1914) and ends when the North American Dominion switched to the system of compulsory military service (conscription) (August 29, 1917). The reconstruction of the details of the material support for soldiers’ dependents during the war helps reveal the details of the functioning of the Canadian government’s social policy in the early 20th century. The article is based on the legislative acts of the Dominion Government, official records of the debates in the Canadian parliament, and the Provincial press publications. It examines the institutional foundations of providing financial assistance to soldiers’ dependents using the example of the creation and activities of special state and non-state institutions (the Canadian Patriotic Fund, the Board of Pension Commissioners, and the Separation Allowance Board). It studies the process of forming the legislative base of social security for dependents of soldiers serving in the Canadian Expeditionary Forces and the Canadian Navy. The author traces the assignment and payment of social benefits to wives, children, parents and other dependents. The Canadian laws enacted during the war provided social assistance to military dependents in the form of state maintenance benefits and survivor’s pensions. The low rate of government benefits was offset by donations raised by charities. The process of creating special state bodies was very slow, and their activities were not always effective. Against this background, the work of the Canadian Patriotic Fund looked more fruitful.

Invisible Congolese Blockage to Peace: Deprivation of Basic Communal Needs Triggers Intractable Conflict in Congo

Protracted conflicts in Africa are often presented in a framework of fragile states, but this article takes a diachronic actor-oriented perspective to analyze the Congolese ethnic conflict. It reveals how ethnic conflict is rooted in Rwandans immigrant's unacknowledged which ties to land and political access exclusion, resulting in recurring conflict between native Congolese versus invisible Congolese—Rwandese immigrants. The focus is on the elite’s strategies and actions vice versa the actions of the invisible Congolese to repel the elite’s oppression; accompanied by negative perceptions towards each other. Deprivation of basic needs is the causal factor that fuels intractable conflict in Congo. The article concludes that needs-based conflict requires problem-solving resolution, nevertheless, the conflict would be static no matter the state’s military dependency to ’The United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo—MONUSCO.

No power vacuum: national security neglect and the defence sector in Brazil

ABSTRACT This paper analyses the relationship between national security policymaking and the defence sector. The goal is to understand how a lack of attention to national security policymaking affects the defence sector and vice-versa using Brazil as a case study. Our main argument is that a lack of attention in national security policymaking by civilian elites can weaken political controls over the armed forces, inhibit effective defence reforms that challenge military prerogatives, and, over time, reinforce militarization in national security policymaking, especially in its three main pillars: defence, intelligence, and public safety. We call this process national security neglect. Our case study shows that as internal security challenges grew in complexity, civilian political elites pushed the military to dealing with public safety, border security, and national security policymaking. Civilians also delegated civilian posts to the armed forces in defence, public safety and intelligence, instead of engaging in broader reforms. This led to a vicious cycle of military dependency, deteriorated the already fragile political controls over the armed forces, inhibited defence reforms, and increased the military role in the state and society.

Voting by Mail and Ballot Rejection: Lessons from Florida for Elections in the Age of the Coronavirus

The COVID-19 pandemic and its concomitant need for social distancing have increased the attractiveness of voting by mail. This form of voting is nonetheless not a panacea for election administration in the time of a public health crisis, as a widespread move to ballots cast by voting by mail risks exacerbating existing inequities in mail-in ballot rejection rates across voters and jurisdictions. This motivates our examination of the roughly 9.6 million and 8.2 million ballots cast in the 2016 and 2018 general elections in Florida, respectively, including over 2.6 million vote-by-mail (VBM) ballots cast in each. Using a selection model that analyzes all ballots cast and those VBM ballots not counted in Florida in these two elections, we find that younger voters, voters not registered with a major political party, and voters in need of assistance when voting are disproportionately likely to have their VBM ballots not count. We also find disproportionately high rejection rates of mail ballots cast by Hispanic voters, out-of-state voters, and military dependents in the 2018 general election. Lastly, we find significant variation in the rejection rates of VBM ballots cast across Florida's 67 counties in the 2018 election, suggesting a non-uniformity in the way local election officials verify these ballots. As interest in expanding mail voting swells as a consequence of the novel coronavirus, protecting the rights of all voters to participate in electoral politics requires a characterization of the correlates of VBM ballot rejection with an eye toward considering how disparities in ballot rejection rates might be rectified.

Sex differences in metabolic syndrome components in adolescent military dependents at high-risk for adult obesity.

Metabolic syndrome in adolescence has been associated with adverse cardiometabolic outcomes in adulthood. Preliminary data suggest that boys may have worsened metabolic syndrome components compared to girls. Yet, little is known about the physical health of military dependents, a potentially at-risk population. Examine sex differences in metabolic syndrome components in a sample of adolescent military dependents. Participants were adolescents (N = 139; 14.4 ± 1.6 years; 45.3% male; 41.0% non-Hispanic White, 19.4% non-Hispanic Black; BMI-z: 1.9 ± 0.4) at-risk for adult obesity and binge-eating disorder due to an age- and sex-adjusted BMI ≥85th percentile and loss-of-control eating and/or elevated anxiety. A multivariate analysis of covariance was conducted to compare objectively measured metabolic syndrome components across boys and girls. Covariates were age, race, loss-of-control eating status, anxiety symptoms, and BMI-z. Metabolic syndrome components differed by sex (P = .01). Boys had higher systolic blood pressure (P = .049), lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = .01), and higher glucose (P = .001) than girls. Waist circumference, diastolic blood pressure, and triglycerides did not differ between boys and girls (P > .05). Future research should prospectively examine these relationships into adulthood. If the current findings are supported, prevention programs should consider targeting cardiometabolic health particularly among male adolescent military dependents.

High-rise social failures

AbstractThis article focuses on the “social failure” of the relocation of the residents from informal historical settlements—military dependents’ villages (juancun)—to high-rise blocks in Taiwan. How does the relocation impact the community and restructure social relationships? I argue social failure is the product of new regulative regimes deriving from the new governance of the high-rise, rather than of the built form of the complexes in itself. New home technologies such as intercoms, elevators, and electronic keys contribute to arguments over safety and convenience, while new regulations, implemented by new forms of authority, including condominium meetings and building administrators, foster the disappearance of household informal economies. Finally, the high-rise dictates new aesthetic norms, which prevent established practices and routines, while promoting what I call aesthetic of assimilation.

Examination of the Interpersonal Model With Adolescent Military Dependents at High Risk for Adult Obesity.

Adolescent military dependents may be at higher risk for psychosocial stressors and disordered eating compared with civilian youths, but the mechanisms underlying these risks are unclear. Interpersonal theory proposes that difficult relationships lead to negative affect, thereby promoting emotional eating, which has been linked to and predictive of disordered eating. The interpersonal model may have particular relevance for understanding disordered eating among adolescent military dependents, given the unique stressors related to their parents' careers. This study aimed to examine the premise of the interpersonal model (that negative emotions mediate the association between multiple aspects of social functioning and emotional eating) among a cohort of adolescent military dependents. Military dependents (N=136; 56% female, mean±SD age=14±2 years, body mass index adjusted for age and sex [BMIz]=2.0±0.4) at risk for adult obesity and binge eating disorder, as indicated by reported loss-of-control eating and/or anxiety symptoms, were assessed prior to participation in a study of excess weight-gain prevention. Bootstrapped mediation analyses were conducted to examine depressive symptoms as a potential mediator of the relationship between social functioning and emotional eating. Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, race-ethnicity, BMIz, and presence of reported loss-of-control eating and anxiety. Depressive symptoms were a significant mediator of the relationship between multiple domains of social functioning, including loneliness, social adjustment related to family and friends, attachment to father and peers, and emotional eating (p<0.05). The interpersonal model may contribute to our understanding of excess weight gain and binge eating disorder among adolescent military dependents. Prospective data are needed to determine the utility of interpersonal theory in predicting treatment response and outcomes among this population.