Investigating Voices Centered in Veteran Family Research: A Call for Greater Representation

When studying family systems and phenomena occurring within the family, a multi-informant approach allows researchers to capture nuanced accounts of family dynamics from multiple perspectives. However, no investigation has examined whether this recommendation is routinely implemented when studying veteran families. This scoping review aimed to identify which “voices” (i.e., person or entity providing data or information on behalf of the veteran and/or veteran family) are most represented in the research and whether multi-informant approaches are used when studying veteran families. EBSCO Discovery Service, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, and the Military REACH online library were searched to identify peer-reviewed articles examining veteran families in the Five Eyes Alliance nations published between January 2018 and March 2023 (n = 42). Studies were categorized by data source (i.e., “voices” of veteran, partner, child, other family member, non-family, or administrative records) and the number of reporters (i.e., single informant vs. multi-informant designs). Over two-thirds (69.5%) of the studies relied on single-informant data, particularly from veterans or their partners, to study veteran family experiences. These findings support a call to action for greater representation of multiple family member perspectives in veteran family research.