Being a Wife of a Veteran with Psychiatric Problem or Chemical Warfare Exposure: A Preliminary Report from Iran

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between marital satisfaction with psychological health in women whose husbands had either suffered from psychiatric problems or been exposed to chemical warfare during Iraq-Iran imposed war. Method: Participants were selected from the war-affected women in Mazandaran province in north of Iran whose husbands had either suffered from a psychiatric problem (psychiatric group) or had been exposed to chemical warfare (chemical group) during Iran-Iraq war (each consisted of 52 women). Women were requested to fill in The Evaluation & Nurturing Relationship Issues Communication and Happiness(ENRICH) questionnaire, Symptom Check List 90-Revised (SCL-90-R) as well as a demograhic form. Results: We found significant negative relationships between SCL-90-R scores and the marital satisfaction scores in both groups. The results failed to indicate significant differences between the two groups on marital satisfaction and demograhic characteristics such as age, number of children, handicapped percentage, and educational level. conclusion: it seems that wives whose husbands had either psychiatric problems or had been exposed to chemical warfare, suffered from diverse psychological problems and medical ailments.