title: Associations among experiential avoidance, couple adjustment, and interpersonal aggression in returning Iraqi war veterans and their partners.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of the present study was to examine the role of experiential avoidance (EA) in relationship adjustment, psychological aggression, and physical aggression among military couples.
  
  
  METHODS
  The sample was composed of 49 male soldiers who recently returned from deployment to Iraq and their female partners. As part of a larger study, participants completed self-report measures of emotional avoidance (EA; Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II), relationship adjustment (Dyadic Adjustment Scale), and conflict (Conflict Tactics Scale-2). Data from men and women were simultaneously modeled with the actor-partner interdependence model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Men's EA was associated with decreases in relationship adjustment and increases in physical aggression perpetration and victimization. For women, relationship adjustment was not associated with EA, but greater EA among women was associated with decreased relationship adjustment for male partners. Associations among EA and psychological aggression were nonsignificant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data provide evidence that EA may play a critical role in the relationships of couples following deployment and highlight the importance of targeting EA in couple therapy.
authors: Minneapolis VA Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN 55417, USA.
authors: Madhavi K
authors: MK
authors: Reddy
authors: Laura A
authors: LA
authors: Meis
authors: Christopher R
authors: CR
authors: Erbes
authors: Melissa A
authors: MA
authors: Polusny
authors: Jill S
authors: JS
authors: Compton
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D019546:Couples Therapy; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012917:Social Adjustment; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*