%0 Journal Article %J Aging & Mental Health %D 2020 %T Subjective well-being among male veterans in later life: The enduring effects of early life adversity. %A Mai See Yang %A Lien Quach %A Lee, Lewina O %A Avron Spiro III %A Jeffrey A Burr %K Adversity %K depression %K Life Satisfaction %K Military service %K Self-rated health %X

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the association between childhood and young adult adversities and later-life subjective well-being among older male veterans. We also explored whether early-life parent-child relationships and later-life social engagement served as moderators and mediators, respectively.

METHODS: Data were from the 2008 to 2012 waves of the Health and Retirement Study for male veterans ( = 2026). Subjective well-being measures included depressive symptoms, self-rated health, and life satisfaction. Linear regression with the macro was employed to estimate the relationships.

RESULTS: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) were positively associated with number of depressive symptoms and negatively related to life satisfaction. Combat exposure, a young adulthood adversity experience, was positively associated with depressive symptoms, but not with self-rated health or life satisfaction. Later-life social engagement mediated the relationship between ACEs and subjective well-being indices. Parent-child relationship quality did not moderate the association between the measures of adversity and any measure of subjective well-being.

DISCUSSION: Childhood adversity and combat exposure were related to worse later life subjective well-being. Also, later-life social engagement mediated the association of two early life adversity measures and subjective well-being. Future research should examine subjective well-being and early life adversity for female veterans and should employ more detailed information about combat exposure.

%B Aging & Mental Health %G eng %R 10.1080/13607863.2020.1842999