Between 2001 and 2004, the divorce rate in the U.S. Army roughly doubled. Here’s a story about it from the Chicago Sun Times. And another from the Los Angeles Times.
Although there’s no direct evidence of causality, all of the stories make the assumption (which seems reasonable) that the unprecedented increase in divorces is attributable to the stress of deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan. “An awful lot of people are going back to Iraq for a second tour — that must be hard to take,” said Army spokesperson Martha Rudd. “You can get through one tour, but then you think, ‘Please, no more.'”
Army personnel who divorce while deployed overseas face special challenges, particularly when child custody is an issue. And even if they are willing for the children to live with the other parent, it’s difficult for them to arrange and implement visitation time with their children.