WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) held a hearing in the Subcommittee on Military Personnel on the impact of deployments on children.  The subcommittee heard from two experts on their respective studies on how the children of service members cope when a parent is deployed.

“While much antidotal information has been shared, until recently there have been very limited analyses of the impact deployments are having on military children,” said Davis, who is chairwoman of the subcommittee.  “The findings of our two witnesses are an important first step toward understanding the needs of our military children, and helping to provide them and their families the programs and support that they need to survive and succeed during these difficult times.”

The subcommittee heard testimony from Dr. Anita Chandra, a behavioral scientist with the RAND Corporation, and Dr. Leonard Wong, research professor at the Strategic Studies Institute at the U.S. Army War College. 

Both studies found that children with a strong non-deployed parent and/or a family support structure was important to ensuring lower levels of stress and a better ability to cope with the deployment.  It was also found that activity, such as a sport, helped keep down stress levels for these children.

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