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The present study examined the impact of financial resources on soldiers' well-being. Using primary data gathered from a large Army installation in the Midwest, results suggested that soldiers with higher credit card debts and lower perceived net worth had lower levels of subjective well-being. Soldiers with greater perceived financial knowledge and larger emergency savings accounts had higher levels of subjective well-being. Results also indicated that automobile loan debt may play a small role in the subjective well-being of soldiers. Personal financial managers, financial planners, counselors, and other military service providers can use this knowledge to identify those whose subjective well-being might be or might become impaired by personal financial distress.
Keywords: financial planning, financial readiness, military, resiliency, subjective well-being
Introduction
Over the last 10 years, nearly 2 million U.S. military members and their families have been impacted by the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan (Hosek, 2011). The psychological impact is most concerning, as nearly a half million service members suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) (Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, 2007). An understanding of the widespread psychological toll is essential to ensuring service members' general well-being. The current study is interested in the role of financial issues in the subjective well-being of service members before deployment.
The levels of stress present in the general population are alarming, as a majority of Americans have reported living with moderate to high levels of stress (American Psychological Association, 2010). Financial stressors are the most prominently cited and include concerns about having enough money, housing costs, and job stability (American Psychological Association, 2010). As an additional sign of economic struggle, almost half of all Americans have trouble keeping up with monthly expenses and bills, which is often exacerbated by frequent relocations and family separations of military families (FINRA Investor Education Foundation, 2010). Each transition can force working military spouses to leave their jobs, which, in turn, reduces family income. Research has shown that military spouses are less likely to be employed than their civilian counterparts, yet they are more likely than civilians to be seeking work (Harrell, Lim, Castaneda, & Golinelli, 2004). Not surprisingly, military spouses have a 26% unemployment rate and earn 25% less than their civilian counterparts...