Marital Status & Risk Behaviors Among U.S. Soldiers

Abstract : Mirroring the civilian literature, military research has shown that married individuals tend to engage in fewer health risk behaviors, such as substance misuse, compared to individuals who were not married. These findings are consistent with the extensive civilian research literature documenting the physical and mental health advantage of being married, especially for men. However, few military studies have examined the relationship between marital status and other risk behaviors such as reckless driving. Using cross-sectional data collected from U.S. soldiers (n=2,588) six months after Iraq and Afghanistan deployments, six self-reported risk behaviors are assessed: driving under the influence of alcohol, using alcohol to sleep or calm down, riding with an alcohol-impaired driver, non-seat belt use while driving, reckless driving, and risky sexual behavior. The prevalence of these behaviors is reported for three marital status groups: currently married, never married, and previously married (separated/widowed/divorced). The associations between marital status and the risk behaviors are also examined with logistic regression analyses adjusting for combat exposure, mental health problems, alcohol misuse, gender, education, rank, number of children supported financially, and service type. In these analyses, never married and previously married soldiers are compared to married soldiers. Findings show that for all six risk behaviors, prevalence rates were highest in either the never married or the previously married group. For one of the outcomes (driving with an alcohol-impaired driver), the prevalence rate was identical in both the never and previously married groups.