Study Reveals Military Marriages Suffer During Extended Deployment Times

A recent article by USA Today summarized the results of a RAND Corporation study, and it revealed military marriages are suffering from a rising divorce rate, especially during lengthy deployments. Research has determined that the risk of divorce rises by the month when a spouse is away, putting his or her life on the line for this country.

Couples are finding, while in the midst of deployment, that the marriage was not what either spouse had aspired for. Sebastian Negrusa, an economist who co-authored the RAND Corp. states, “the length, conditions and risks of the deployment are sources of shocks to the value of military marriages.”

Even though we train our military to be prepared for deployment at anytime, shock of the September 11th attacks in 2001 on our country took a staggering hit on many military families that were established prior to September 11, 2001. The post-9/11 military marriages are, however, maintaining slightly better odds.

The study also reports that couples who undergo these circumstances with the female as the deployed spouse face a higher risk for divorce than if the husband were the deployed spouse. If the deployment for the woman involves combat, the marriage has a one-in-two chance of divorce within the first five years.