Exploring the Life-Course Experiences of Justice-Involved Military Veterans: Deviance, Mental Health Outcomes, and Daily Experiences

By Brice J. Terpstra

The findings of this study on the role of military service in the lives of justice-involved military veterans suggest that the role of military service is nuanced and that for many veterans the military directly impacted both deviance and mental health outcomes. Further, emotionality of these veterans is quite variant over time, while social togetherness and engagement in activity show to be impactful on emotional well-being. Overall, this research expands the understanding of the role of military service in the life-course and provides an in-depth look into the daily and life-course experiences of justice-involved veterans, ultimately giving voice to the veterans themselves to articulate their own experiences and needs. This study explores the life-course experiences of justice-involved veterans in three separate, yet interconnected ways: (1) trajectories of deviance across the life-course and the impact of military service on deviance; (2) the relationships between military service, mental health, and negative life-course outcomes; and (3) the daily experiences of justice-involved veterans, including who they spend time with, what they spend time doing, and how these factors impact emotion. This work is one of the few to utilize qualitative inquiry to better understand the relationship between military service and trajectories of deviance for justice-involved veterans, and is the first to use ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methodology to examine the daily experiences of justice-involved veterans.

Tempe, AZ: Arizona State University, 2024. 215p.