TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2014//
TI  - Well-being and suicidal ideation of secondary school students from military families
JO  - Journal of Adolescent Health
A1  - Cederbaum, Julie A.
A1  - Gilreath, Tamika D.
A1  - Benbenishty, Rami
A1  - Astor, Ron Avi
A1  - Pineda, Diana
A1  - Depedro, Kris T.
A1  - Esqueda, Monica Christina
A1  - Atuel, Hazel
SP  - 672
EP  - 677
VL  - 54
IS  - 6
N2  - BACKGROUND: The mental health of children is a primary public health concern; adolescents of military personnel may be at increased risk of experiencing poorer well-being overall and depressive symptoms specifically. These adolescents experience individual and intrafamilial stressors of parental deployment and reintegration, which are directly and indirectly associated with internalizing behaviors. PURPOSE: The present study sought to better understand the influence of parental military connectedness and parental deployment on adolescent mental health. METHODS: Data from the 2011 California Healthy Kids Survey examined feeling sad or hopeless, suicidal ideation, well-being, and depressive symptoms by military connectedness in a subsample (n = 14,299) of seventh-, ninth-, and 11th-grade California adolescents. Cross-classification tables and multiple logistic regression analyses were used. RESULTS: More than 13% of the sample had a parent or sibling in the military. Those with military connections were more likely to report depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Controlling for grade, gender, and race/ethnicity, reporting any familial deployment compared with no deployments was associated with increasing odds of experiencing sadness or hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation. CONCLUSIONS: Findings emphasize the increased risk of mental health issues among youth with parents (and siblings) in the military. Although deployment-related mental health stressors are less likely during peace, during times of war there is a need for increased screening in primary care and school settings. Systematic referral systems and collaboration with community-based mental health centers will bolster screening and services.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1054-139X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2013.09.006
ID  - ref1
ER  -