Study on Psychosocial Issues Related to Extramarital Relationships among Junior Sailors and Senior Sailors in Sri Lanka Navy

Abstract

In the present society, extramarital relationships amongst heterosexual married couples have become a major concern as they relate to various family and social issues. The prevalence of extramarital relationships in Sri Lanka and particularly in a military context remain largely unexplored. Previously conducted informal research, and discussions carried out by the Sri Lanka Navy Mental Health Team have found extramarital relationships to be connected to incidents of suicide. Furthermore, they are also connected to job related issues such as having to conduct numerous Board of Inquiries. Hence it is apparent how extramarital relationships, and issues pertaining to them can potentially affect the career development and job satisfaction of Naval personnel. In addition, existing literature points to sex problems in marital relationships, boredom, monotony and the need to boost one’s ego as reasons for engaging in extramarital relationships. As such it was considered imperative that the reasons for engaging in extramarital relationships be explored in the Sri Lankan military context through the present research. Furthermore, disparities between personal beliefs on extramarital relationships and consensus amongst friends about them were also explored through the data obtained from the research sample. A semi structured questionnaire with six open-ended questions was used to collect data that participants could self-report.The data was analysed using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative data analysis was carried out using thematic analysis, whereas quantitative data were analysed in the form of percentages. The results indicated that 68% of sailors shared a personal negative attitude towards extramarital relationships stating them as a major cause for family problems, divorce, suicides, and concerns for the future of children.However, the results showed that 51% shared positive views towards extramarital relationships when asked to report the opinions of their friends on extramarital relationships. Among the means of starting extramarital relationships, the highest reported were through the use of mobile phones in terms of mistakenly taken or answered calls. The internet and social media, particularly Facebook, were also reported among the ways of initiating them. Among the reported reasons for starting extramarital relationships were staying in the camp for a long time away from the family, family conflicts, to overcome monotony and boredom, and sexual dissatisfaction in the marital relationships. The results make it clear that the majority of sailors have a negative attitude towards extramarital relationships, however it is discussed in a social level amongst friends as a positive aspect. These views and results are important to enlighten them about psycho-social issues prevalent amongst Naval personnel due to extramarital relationships.