The Psychological Readiness Model of Military Personnel to Take Risks during a Combat Deployment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18662/brain/12.3/220Keywords:
psychological readiness;, risk;, hardiness;, military personnel;, combat deployment;Abstract
The purpose of this article is to present an empirically-derived psychological readiness model of military personnel to take risks during combat deployment. The model was developed using the methods of semantic differential, peer review, and factor analysis. Its theoretical basis is the concept of “hardiness”. The study involved 104 military personnel of the National Guard of Ukraine had combat experience in the War in Eastern Ukraine. The model includes four components: “Ability for volitional efforts (mobilization)”, “Military brotherhood”, “Professional identity”, “Self-control (endurance)”. Their content covers the emotional-volitional, cognitive, motivational, moral, active-practical, existential-being, and interpersonal-social spheres of the individual. The leading role in the model belongs to strong-willed features, combat cohesion, patriotism, and adaptive resources of the individual, which make it possible to maintain the effectiveness of military personnel’s combat activities under conditions of risk. The basis of the psychological readiness of military personnel to actively act and overcome difficulties in conditions of risk (uncertainty, direct threat to health and life) with the absence of reliable guarantees for success is hardiness. It is suggested that the model can be used for psychological selection procedures, professional and psychological training of military personnel, predicting their behavior under conditions of risk, and developing strategies for psychological support in the post-deployment period. This will reduce psychogenic losses during hostilities.
References
Bartels, J. M., Magun-Jackson, S., & Kemp, A. D. (2009). Volitional Regulation and self-regulated Learning: An Examination of Individual Differences in Approach-Avoidance Achievement Motivation. Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, 7(2), 605–626. bit.ly/3nN6YrI
Bartone, P. T. (2006). Resilience Under Military Operational Stress: Can Leaders Influence Hardiness? Military Psychology, 18(sup1), S131–S148. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327876mp1803s_10
Bartone, P. T., Johnsen, B. H., Eid, J., Brun, W., & Laberg, J. C. (2002). Factors Influencing Small-Unit Cohesion in Norwegian Navy Officer Cadets. Military Psychology, 14(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327876MP1401_01
Bartone, P. T., Roland, R. R., Picano, J. J., & Williams, T. J. (2008). Psychological Hardiness Predicts Success in US Army Special Forces Candidates. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 16(1), 78–81. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2389.2008.00412.x
Bein, L., Grau, P. P., Saunders, S. M., & DeRoon-Cassini, T. A. (2019). Military Mental Health: Problem Recognition, Treatment-Seeking, and Barriers. Military Behavioral Health, 7(2), 228–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/21635781.2018.1526147
Ben-Shalom, U., Lehrer, Z., & Ben-Ari, E. (2005). Cohesion during Military Operations. Armed Forces & Society, 32(1), 63–79. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X05277888
Blinov, O. (2018). Combat stress and results of its empirical study. Psychological journal, 4(2), 9–22. https://doi.org/10.31108/2018vol12iss2pp9-22
Boe, O. (2015a). Building Resilience: The Role of Character Strengths in the Selection and Education of Military Leaders. International Journal of Emergency Mental Health and Human Resilience, 01(04). https://doi.org/10.4172/1522-4821.1000301
Boe, O. (2015b). Character in Military Leaders, Officer Competency and Meeting the Unforeseen. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 190, 497–501. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.05.033
Breivik, G., Sand, T. S., & Sookermany, A. M. (2020). Risk-taking attitudes and behaviors in the Norwegian population: the influence of personality and background factors. Journal of Risk Research, 23(11), 1504–1523. https://doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2020.1750455
Börjesson, M., Österberg, J., & Enander, A. (2015). Risk propensity within the military: a study of Swedish officers and soldiers. Journal of Risk Research, 18(1), 55–68. https://doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2013.879489
Chu, C., Stanley, I. H., Hom, M. A., Lim, I. C., & Joiner, T. E. (2016). Deployment, Mental Health Problems, Suicidality, and Use of Mental Health Services Among Military Personnel. Military Behavioral Health, 4(3), 243–250. https://doi.org/10.1080/21635781.2016.1153533
Escolas, S. M., Pitts, B. L., Safer, M. A., & Bartone, P. T. (2013). The Protective Value of Hardiness on Military Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms. Military Psychology, 25(2), 116–123. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0094953
Florian, V., Mikulincer, M., & Taubman, O. (1995). Does hardiness contribute to mental health during a stressful real-life situation? The roles of appraisal and coping. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(4), 687–695. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.68.4.687
Forstmeier, S., & Ruddel, H. (2008). Measuring Volitional Competences: Psychometric Properties of a Short Form of the Volitional Components Questionnaire (VCQ) in a Clinical Sample. The Open Psychology Journal, 1(1), 66–77. https://doi.org/10.2174/1874350100801010066
Delahaij, R., Gaillard, A. W. K., & Soeters, J. M. L. M. (2006). Stress Training and the New Military Environment. In Human Dimensions in Military Operations – Military Leaders’ Strategies for Addressing Stress and Psychological Support (pp. 17A-1 – 17A-10). Meeting Proceedings RTO-MP-HFM-134, Paper 17A. RTO.
Gayton, S. D., & Kehoe, E. J. (2015). Character Strengths and Hardiness of Australian Army Special Forces Applicants. Military Medicine, 180(8), 857–862. https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00527
Griffith, J. (2010). When Does Soldier Patriotism or Nationalism Matter? The Role of Transformational Small-Unit Leaders. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 40(5), 1235–1257. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2010.00617.x
Heckhausen, H. (1991). Volition: Implementation of Intentions. In H. Heckhausen (Ed.), Motivation and Action (pp. 163–188). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-75961-1_6
Hrytsiuk, V. M., Pashkova, O. O., Pokotylo, O. I., Seheda, S. P., & Skriabin, O. L. (2019). Informatsiyno-dovidkovi materialy shchodo khronolohiyi podiy 2014–2019 rokiv, yaki vidbuvalysya v Avtonomniy Respublitsi Krym ta pid chas provedennya antyterorystychnoyi operatsiyi / operatsiyi Obyednanykh syl na Skhodi Ukrayiny [Information and reference materials on the chronology of events of 2014-2019, which took place in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and during the anti-terrorist operation / Joint Forces operations in eastern Ukraine] (p. 21). bit.ly/34IeU6k
Johansen, R. B., Laberg, J. C., & Martinussen, M. (2014). Military Identity as Predictor of Perceived Military Competence and Skills. Armed Forces & Society, 40(3), 521–543. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X13478405
Kaikkonen, N. M., & Laukkala, T. (2016). International military operations and mental health – A review. Nordic Journal of Psychiatry, 70(1), 10–15. https://doi.org/10.3109/08039488.2015.1048718
King, A. (2006). The Word of Command. Armed Forces & Society, 32(4), 493–512. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X05283041
Kobasa, S. C. (1979). Stressful life events, personality, and health: An inquiry into hardiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.37.1.1
Kokun, O., Agayev, N., Pischko, I., & Stasiuk, V. (2020). Characteristic Impacts of Combat Stressors on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Ukrainian Military Personnel Who Participated in the Armed Conflict in Eastern Ukraine. International Journal of Psychology & Psychological Therapy, 20(3), 315–326. https://www.ijpsy.com/volumen20/num3/554/characteristic-impacts-of-combat-stressors-EN.pdf
Kolesnichenko, O. S., Matsegora,Y. V., Prykhodko, I. I., Lyman, A. A., Timchenko, O. V., Yurieva, N. V., & Horelyshev, S. A. (2019). Psihologichna gotovnist do riziku viyskovosluzhbovtsiv Natsionalnoyi gvardiyi Ukrayini [Psychological readiness to risk of the military personnel of the National Guard of Ukraine]. NANGU.
Krebs, R. R., & Ralston, R. (2020). Patriotism or Paychecks: Who Believes What About Why Soldiers Serve. Armed Forces & Society, 0095327X2091716. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X20917166
Leontev, D. A., & Rasskazova, E. I. (2006). Test zhiznestoykosti [Hardiness test]. Smysl.
Maddi, S. R. (2002). The story of hardiness: Twenty years of theorizing, research, and practice. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 54(3), 173–185. https://doi.org/10.1037/1061-4087.54.3.173
Maddi, S. R. (2006). Hardiness: The courage to grow from stresses. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(3), 160–168. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760600619609
Maddi, S. R. (2007). Relevance of Hardiness Assessment and Training to the Military Context. Military Psychology, 19(1), 61–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/08995600701323301
Maddi, S. R., & Khoshaba, D. M. (1994). Hardiness and Mental Health. Journal of Personality Assessment, 63(2), 265–274. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa6302_6
Melnyk, Y. B., Prykhodko, I. I., & Stadnik, A. V. (2019). Medical-psychological support of specialists’ professional activity in extreme conditions. Minerva Psichiatrica, 60(4), 158−168. https://doi.org/10.23736/S0391-1772.19.02025-9
Meyer, E. G. (2015). The Importance of Understanding Military Culture. Academic Psychiatry, 39(4), 416–418. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-015-0285-1
Momen, N., Taylor, M. K., Pietrobon, R., Gandhi, M., Markham, A. E., Padilla, G. A., Miller, P. W., Evans, K. E., & Sander, T. C. (2010). Initial Validation of the Military Operational Risk Taking Scale (MORTS). Military Psychology, 22(2), 128–142. https://doi.org/10.1080/08995601003638942
Myrseth, H., Hystad, S. W., Säfvenbom, R., & Olsen, O. K. (2018). Perception of specific military skills – the impact of perfectionism and self-efficacy. Journal of Military Studies, 9(1), 34-48. https://doi.org/10.2478/jms-2018-0002
Nash W. P. (2007). Combat stress injury: Theory, research, and management. In C. R. Figley & W. P. Nash (Eds.), Combat stress injury: Theory, research, and management. Routledge.
Nindl, B. C., Billing, D. C., Drain, J. R., Beckner, M. E., Greeves, J., Groeller, H., Teien, H. K., Marcora, S., Moffitt, A., Reilly, T., Taylor, N. A. S., Young, A.J., & Friedl, K. E. (2018). Perspectives on resilience for military readiness and preparedness: Report of an international military physiology roundtable. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 21(11), 1116–1124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2018.05.005
Osgood, C. E. (1952). The nature and measurement of meaning. Psychological Bulletin, 49(3), 197–237. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0055737
Pitts, B. L., Safer, M. A., Russell, D. W., & Castro-Chapman, P. L. (2016). Effects of Hardiness and Years of Military Service on Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms in U.S. Army Medics. Military Psychology, 28(4), 278–284. https://doi.org/10.1037/mil0000106
Pols, H., & Oak, S. (2007). War & military mental health: the US psychiatric response in the 20th century. American Journal of Public Health, 97(12), 2132–2142. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2006.090910
Prykhodko, I., Matsehora, Y., Bielai, S., Hunbin, K., & Kalashchenko, S. (2019). Classification of Coping Strategies Influencing Mental Health of Military Personnel Having Different Combat Experience. Georgian Medical News, 12(297), 130−135.
Prykhodko, I. I., Bielai, S. V., Hrynzovskyi, A. M., Zhelaho, A. М., Hodlevskyi, S. O., & Kalashchenko, S. I. (2020). Medical and psychological aspects of safety and adaptation of military personnel to extreme conditions. Wiadomości Lekarskie, 73(4), 679–683. https://doi.org/10.36740/WLek202004110
Prykhodko, I., Matsehora Y., Kolesnichenko, O., Stasiuk, V., Bolshakova, A., & Bilyk, O. (2021). Psychological First Aid for Military Personnel in Combat Operations: The Ukrainian Model. Military Behavioral Health, 9(3), 289-296. https://doi.org/10.1080/21635781.2020.1864530
Serkin, V. P. (2008). Metody psihologii subektivnoj semantiki i psihosemantiki [Methods of psychology of subjective semantics and psycho-semantics]. Psichea.
Shamlyan, K. (2020). Volitional organization of personality as a subject of empirical research. Journal of Education Culture and Society, 6(2), 257–267. https://doi.org/10.15503/jecs20152.257.267
Siebold, G. L. (2007). The Essence of Military Group Cohesion. Armed Forces & Society, 33(2), 286–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X06294173
Stasiuk, Y. (2018). Ukrayinski dobrovolchi formuvannya yak unikalne yavyshche nezalezhnoyi Ukrayiny [Ukrainian volunteer units as a unique phenomenon of independent Ukraine]. Viyskovo-istorychnyy merydian, 2(20), 17–29.
Stoklasa, J., Talášek, T., & Stoklasová, J. (2019). Semantic differential for the twenty-first century: scale relevance and uncertainty entering the semantic space. Quality & Quantity, 53(1), 435–448. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-018-0762-1
Yehuda, R., Vermetten, E., McFarlane, A. C., & Lehrner, A. (2014). PTSD in the military: special considerations for understanding prevalence, pathophysiology and treatment following deployment. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 5(1), 25322. https://doi.org/10.3402/ejpt.v5.25322
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 The Authors & LUMEN Publishing House
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant this journal right of first publication, with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work, with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g. in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as an earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
BRAIN. Broad Research in Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience Journal has an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs
CC BY-NC-ND
