Naslov
Stress, Coping Strategies and Quality of Life Among Spouses of Croatian War Veterans

Autori
Knežević, Martina ; Šeremet, Ana ; Batinić, Lana ; Tomac, Patricia ; Bošnjaković, Josip

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, sažetak, znanstveni

Izvornik
Coping with Crisis: Pathways towards Resilience / Pačić-Turk, Ljiljana ; Žutić, Maja - Zagreb : Hrvatsko katoličko sveučilište, 2021, 28-28

ISBN
978-953-8014-62-8

Skup
3. međunarodna znanstvena konferencija: Suočavanje s kriznim situacijama – putevi jačanja otpornosti

Mjesto i datum
Zagreb, Hrvatska, 09.12.2021. - 11.12.2021

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Domaća recenzija

Ključne riječi
posttraumatic symptoms ; secondary traumatization ; coping strategies ; quality of life

Sažetak
Even though the Croatian War of Independence ended more than 25 years ago, its consequences are permanently present in various aspects of life in the local population. Previous research has investigated the effects of war trauma on everyday life and functioning of Croatian war veterans and their wives, focusing on the effects of husbands’ war trauma on everyday functioning of their wives. One study showed that the quality of life among wives of Croatian war veterans diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is significantly lower than the quality of life of wives whose husbands do not have this diagnosis. In addition to the husband’s participation in the war and his potential diagnosis, here we have focused on the personal traumatic experiences of the war veterans' wives, their coping strategies, and the related quality of life. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the relationship between trauma symptoms, coping strategies and subjective well-being. The study included 92 women divided into three groups: war veterans’ wives whose husbands were diagnosed with PTSD, war veterans’ wives whose husbands were not diagnosed with PTSD, and wives whose husbands did not actively participate in the Homeland war. Contrary to our expectations, we did not find any differences in the level of current trauma symptoms between these three groups of wives. It seems that the husband’s participation in the war and the husband's PTSD diagnosis are not significant predictors of the wives’ quality of life. Our results have shown that their current trauma symptoms and coping strategies were significant predictors of their quality of life. We will discuss the importance of including all members of the veterans’ families and their personal experiences in research on the consequences of war trauma. These findings can serve as a starting point in creating programs aimed at improving the quality of life of veteran families.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Psihologija

POVEZANOST RADA