Today's Army Spouse Survey - Thomas E Trail - Bog

U.S. Army families face not only challenges affecting all families but also those related to military service; the latter challenges may create new problems or exacerbate existing problems. The Army has recognized these unique challenges and implemented programs and services to help Army families and Army spouses, in particular. The authors of this report describe the results of the unique survey approach to understanding Army family program use through the lens of a problem-solving process. In the survey, completed by more than 8,500 Army spouses, participants received a list of specific challenges within nine problem domains, and spouses were asked to prioritize which two top problem domains contained the most significant problems they faced in the past year; what their top needs were for each problem; which resources, if any, they had contacted to meet the needs; and whether using those resources met their needs. Finally, respondents were asked about three specific outcomes-experience of stress, general attitudes toward the Army, and support for the soldier spouse remaining in the Army-and the authors analyzed the association between the problem-solving process and these three outcomes.