Date

4-29-2026

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Sharita Knobloch

Keywords

STS, PTSD, emotional dysregulation, marital satisfaction, worldview, post-traumatic growth, military spouse.

Disciplines

Psychiatry and Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Abstract

The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS) in military spouses whose partners have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The theory guiding this study was Lazarus and Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (TMSC). The central research question was: What are the lived experiences of STS in spouses married to a service member with PTSD? Additional sub-questions addressed changes in worldview, marital satisfaction, and daily functioning. Criterion and snowball sampling were used to select participants who were married to service members with PTSD for the study. Following the hermeneutical phenomenological methodology, utilizing social constructivism as a framework, 15 participants were interviewed utilizing a semi-structured interview format. The data was analyzed using ATLAS.TI, a Qualitative Data Analysis Software (QDAS). Three Themes and eleven sub themes were identified. Themes included New Normal, Redefining Marriage, and Life After Trauma. Results indicate that military spouses had little to no knowledge of STS and how their partners PTSD affect their own emotional regulation, marital satisfaction, and daily functioning. The findings of this study have practical implications, highlight the need for future research, and provides insight into the experience of STS for military spouses whose service member spouse has PTSD.

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