A conceptual model identifying the role of spouse support in Vietnam veterans' adjustment to PTSD was presented in this study by identifying the communication barriers created by PTSD in the relationship and illustrating the difficulty of, and therapeutic need for, providing spouse support to PTSD victims. In this study spouse support was defined in terms of marital communication system. The four major symptoms of PTSD are depression, residual guilt and grief, reexperiencing of trauma, and detachment and anger. According to the model, PTSD sufferers, plagued by the fear that a disclosure of deeds committed during the war could lead to rejection, developed a non-intimate communication style. The model also identified a defensive verbal or nonverbal behavior which manifested itself in a threatening or punishing attitude towards others. As a reaction to such behavior, the spouse also developed a defensive or non-intimate response, noted in the model as communication apprehension. The study concluded that urgent research was needed to identify specific behavior supportive to PTSD sufferers, so that effective intervention strategies could be designed to teach veterans' spouses how to provide socioemotional support. Tables and 42 references. (Author abstract modified)