Assessment of Marital Satisfaction Among Spouses of Soldiers: The Example of Turkey

Abstract

ABSTRACT Introduction Military personnel and their families face biopsychosocial risk factors due to frequent deployments, long and dangerous assignments, being away from home, not being able to spend time with their family, and adaptation to family life after returning from duty. These risks are among the factors affecting the marital satisfaction of military families. Materials and Methods Our study population consists of 6 military spouses selected by the maximum sampling method, which the researchers reached using their resources. The research was conducted in Van Province between January and February 2021. The semi-structured interview form prepared by the researchers was used in the research designed with the qualitative research method. During the interviews, audio was recorded and transcribed. Results With the findings obtained from the interviews, subthemes were formed by considering similar expressions used by the participants regarding their opinions under the main themes. The main themes that emerged in the research were the experience of being married to a soldier, relational satisfaction, the effect of duties on the relationship, and perception of social context. Considering all the results, it has been revealed that alongside long-term and far-from-home assignments due to the nature of military service, the military lifestyle determines the marital satisfaction of military spouses. Accordingly, it was observed that military spouses and families must be supported during the soldiers’ duties and complicated professional processes. Conclusions This study reveals that long-term and far-from-home assignments due to military service impact the marital satisfaction. Accordingly, it was observed that military spouses and families must be supported during the soldiers’ duties and complicated professional processes.