Influences of Cumulative Risk and Protective Factors on the Adjustment of Adolescents in Military Families

Abstract

The accumulation of stressors is adversely related to adolescent well‐being. Using the contextual model of family stress and the theory of community action and change, the authors explored normative and context‐specific risks factors among adolescents from military families ( N = 1,036) and the role of relationships (family, informal networks, formal systems) as protective factors. Youth who reported higher levels of cumulative risk experienced more depressive symptoms, lower academic performance, and lower persistence. When accounting for family support and presence of informal networks, depressive symptoms were lower, academic performance was higher, and persistence was higher; participation in formal systems was associated with better academic performance. The influential nature of cumulative risk was mitigated in the presence of meaningful relationships, providing support for empirically grounded leverage points to enhance positive youth development.