Posted on Jan 16, 2016
Does serving in the military have a negative impact on the earning potential of Servicemember's children?
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/01/15/a-major-new-finding-about-the-impact-of-having-a-dad-who-went-to-vietnam/
Research suggests children of those drafted to serve in Vietnam earn substantially less than children of those who weren't. PTSD is identified as a potential contributing factor. Is this relevant for today's Iraq and Afghanistan veterans?
While we obviously aren't using a draft, PTSD is a major issue.
Research suggests children of those drafted to serve in Vietnam earn substantially less than children of those who weren't. PTSD is identified as a potential contributing factor. Is this relevant for today's Iraq and Afghanistan veterans?
While we obviously aren't using a draft, PTSD is a major issue.
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 10
The article headline and the actual study parameters don't match. Thr study actually just looked at people born on the birthdays that were draft eligible, bur made no attempt to determine if they actually went into the Army at all, much less servrd in VN. Then it states that only 13% of the group as a whole (not necessarily the individuals in the study) was drafted anyway. So there conclusion doesn't claim to have any connection to serving in VN. Plus, the methodology is horrible, and the article basically admits they have no clue as to any causal connection at all.
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MAJ (Join to see)
I noticed that, as well. But the researchers didn't write the article title, WaPo did.
Also, I'd recommend you re read the article. The study authors clearly link being draft eligible to a negative earning potential for one's children. Also, the point of the study wasn't to determine actual causes, although the authors do make a few guesses.
Also, I'd recommend you re read the article. The study authors clearly link being draft eligible to a negative earning potential for one's children. Also, the point of the study wasn't to determine actual causes, although the authors do make a few guesses.
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Capt Seid Waddell
@MAJ (Anonymous), LTC (Join to see), perhaps wages are lower in Canada. A lot of draft eligible men went there during the war.
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Military child here, son of a military member who served in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as Somalia. I've not seen my earning potential go down at all as a result of my father's service. Instead the lifestyle has instilled me with a sense of self respect and confidence that I doubt many civilian children have. If I wasn't joining the military after college I would be entering a field with a starting salary of 70k per year according to latest statistics. In addition the majority of my high school graduating class are also attending college which increases earning potential. While I can't speak for Vietnam era draftees children my experience with the current generation of military children leads me to conclude that we have higher earning potential.
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MAJ (Join to see)
I think repeating such a study in 40 years or so, once the vast majority of children of the post-9/11 wars have been in the work force for a couple decades, would be a great idea to determine if such an impact exists for the current generation of veterans. Many, many generational differences exist, including a significant increase in the education levels of currently serving members.
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In general, no. My two children were far more adaptable when encountering new situations than kids that had been in the same schools due to all the moves. They and their Mom became independent since they were missing the male figure much of the time for leadership and discipline. I could go on, but you get the picture from my perspective.
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