Comments on the articles dealing with individual performance criteria that are included in this special issue of Military Psychology.

Individual performance criterion measurement is central to effective personnel management in the military services, and to all other organizations as well. The articles in this special issue summarize the state of the art in all major phases of performance criterion development and assessment. The overall record, while it varies in terms of current progress across the major parts, is admirable. What's next is an equally thorough examination of the utility of validity.

Advancing the Practice of Contemporary Military Performance Psychology:A Full-Spectrum Approach to Psychological Health and Readiness.

The Department of Defense (DoD) continues to emphasize operational readiness, lethality, and optimal performance. Performance psychology is a critical aspect of and central dimension to human performance optimization in support of Preservation of the Force and Family (POTFF) and Total Force Fitness (TFF). The delivery of performance psychology services must continue to evolve to maximize its potential for enhancing combat performance and supporting psychological readiness in warfighters across all branches of service. The authors (1) provide a brief history of the evolution of military psychology; (2) explore how performance psychology complements and broadens approaches to support warfighter health and readiness; and (3) present a set of strategies to advance performance psychology services toward an aspirational model. Such strategies will more effectively promote best practices to better target operational performance, complement existing health and medical service delivery, and encompass a systems approach to sustainable training. Moreover, these strategies aim to increase return on investment of psychological readiness efforts for warfighters across all branches of service.

Evidências de validade da escala de engajamento na carreira no contexto militar / Validity evidence of the career engagement scale in the military context / Evidencias de validez de la escala de compromiso profesional en el contexto militar

O engajamento na carreira associa-se a comportamentos proativos capazes de intensificar o desenvolvimento da carreira. Este estudo buscou reunir evidências de validade de estrutura interna da Escala de Engajamento na Carreira e de suas relações com variáveis externas, em contexto militar. A amostra foi composta por 467 militares do Exército Brasileiro, de ambos os sexos (94,4% do sexo masculino), majoritariamente pertencentes à linha bélica (82,4%) e provenientes de diferentes estados, com destaque para o Rio de Janeiro (39,2%). Os participantes responderam a escalas de engajamento na carreira, adaptabilidade de carreira, autoeficácia geral percebida, satisfação com a carreira e percepção atual do desenvolvimento profissional, de forma on-line. As análises fatoriais confirmatórias evidenciaram que o modelo de dois fatores de 1ª ordem com um fator de 2ª ordem apresentou os melhores índices de ajustes, diferindo do modelo original do instrumento. A Escala de Engajamento na Carreira obteve correlação significativa e positiva alta com a adaptabilidade de carreira e significativa e positiva moderada com a autoeficácia, a satisfação com a carreira e o desenvolvimento profissional. Concluiu-se que as evidências de validade obtidas possibilitam o uso futuro da escala na avaliação do engajamento na carreira no contexto militar.(AU)

Career engagement is associated with proactive behaviors capable of enhancing career development. The study sought to gather evidence of the internal structure validity of the Career Engagement Scale and its relations to external variables in a military context. The sample consisted of 467 soldiers of the Brazilian Army, of both sexes (94.4% male), belonging mainly to the war line (82.4%) and coming from different states, with emphasis on Rio de Janeiro (39.2%). The participants answered on-line the scales for measuring career engagement, career adaptability, perceived general self-efficacy, satisfaction with the career and current perception of professional development. The confirmatory factor analyses showed that the model of two factors of 1st order with a factor of 2nd order was the one that presented the best fit indexes, differing from the original model of the instrument. The Career Engagement Scale obtained a significant and positive high correlation with career adaptability and a significant and positive moderate correlation with self-efficacy, career satisfaction, and professional development. We concluded that the validity evidence obtained allow the future use of the scale for evaluating career engagement in the military context.(AU)

El compromiso profesional se asocia con comportamientos proactivos capaces de mejorar el desarrollo profesional. El estudio buscó recolectar evidencias de validez de la estructura interna de la Escala de Compromiso Profesional y de sus relaciones con variables externas en un contexto militar. La muestra estaba compuesta por 467 soldados del Ejército Brasileño, de ambos sexos (94,4% hombres), en su mayoría pertenecientes a la línea de guerra (82,4%), provenientes de diferentes estados, con énfasis en Río de Janeiro (39,2%). Los participantes respondieron a las escalas de compromiso profesional, adaptabilidad profesional, autoeficacia general percibida, satisfacción con la carrera y percepción actual del desarrollo profesional en línea. Los análisis factoriales confirmatorios mostraron que el modelo de dos factores de 1er orden con un factor de 2do orden fue el que presentó mejores índices de ajustes, diferenciándose del modelo original del instrumento. La Escala de Compromiso Profesional obtuvo una alta correlación significativa y positiva con la adaptabilidad a la carrera y una correlación significativa y positiva moderada con la autoeficacia, la satisfacción profesional y el desarrollo profesional. Se concluyó que las evidencias de validez de la escala permiten su uso futuro en la evaluación del compromiso profesional, en el contexto militar.(AU)

Loneliness Following Widowhood: The Role of the Military and Social Support.

OBJECTIVES: Increased loneliness is a common consequence of widowhood in later life. However, individuals with high levels of perceived social support from friends tend to cope more effectively following major social losses like widowhood. Military service is associated with cultivation of strong social support structures. This effect may not only influence those who serve, but also their spouses. Roughly half of older women today are married to veterans, which could shape how they cope with widowhood. We tested two hypotheses: (a) widows of veterans will be less lonely following widowhood compared to their nonveteran counterparts, and (b) this effect will be explained by perceived social support from friends. METHODS: We used the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to examine changes in loneliness following widowhood among wives of veterans and nonveterans. We used Ordinary Least Squares regression and mediation tests to address our hypotheses. RESULTS: Net of baseline differences, widows of veterans reported statistically lower levels of loneliness (p < .05) following widowhood compared to widows of nonveterans. Widows of veterans retained the same level of perceived social support from friends pre- and postwidowhood, whereas nonveteran wives experienced a loss. Perceived social support from friends mediated the association between veteran status of the deceased spouse and loneliness. DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest wives of veterans may have more resilient social support structures than nonveteran spouses, helping them cope at widowhood. Future research should explore whether these effects persist in association with other major stressful events in later life.

The effect of military training on the sense of agency and outcome processing.

Armed forces often rely on strict hierarchical organization, where people are required to follow orders. In two cross-sectional studies, we investigate whether or not working in a military context influences the sense of agency and outcome processing, and how different durations (junior cadets vs senior cadets) and types (cadets vs privates) of military experience may modulate these effects. Participants could administer painful electrical shocks to a 'victim' in exchange for money, either by their own free choice, or following orders of the experimenter. Results indicate that working in a strictly hierarchical structure may have a generalized negative impact on one's own sense of agency and outcome processing by reducing it, even when participants could freely decide their action. However, trained officers showed an enhanced sense of agency and outcome processing. This study offers insights on the potential for training the sense of agency and outcome processing.

In the immediate wake of Hoffman's independent review: Psychologist and general public perceptions.

In 2015, the American Psychological Association (APA) commissioned an independent review (IR) to examine APA's potential involvement with "enhanced interrogation" procedures following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The IR concluded that certain APA officials acted together with the Department of Defense to "align APA and curry favor with" the Department of Defense to allow the involvement of psychologists in such enhanced interrogations (Hoffman et al., 2015, p. 9). Discussion following the IR's release underscored differences in the views of psychologists regarding the IR's conclusions. Despite extensive discussion, there is only anecdotal evidence regarding the views of psychologists on many of the questions investigated in the IR. This study examined the opinions of psychologists and the public shortly after the IR's release regarding the roles of psychologists in national security interrogations and other non-treatment-focused contexts. This survey of psychologists (N = 1,146) engaged in treatment-focused and non-treatment-focused activities, and of the general public (N = 522), sheds light on the broader perceptions of the IR's conclusions, and is relevant in considering future directions for the profession. Results suggest that the public is more accepting of psychologists' involvement in national security settings, including involvement in many of the activities highlighted as problematic in the IR, than are psychologists. The perceptions of treatment-focused and non-treatment-focused psychologists regarding the appropriate roles of psychologists in national security settings did not differ significantly. These empirical data should help inform the ongoing discussion in this area. None of the authors is associated with an unequivocal position on the IR or the issues addressed as part of it. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Uncovering the metaphysics of psychological warfare: The social science behind the Psychological Strategy Board's operations planning, 1951-1953.

In April 1951 president Harry S. Truman established the Psychological Strategy Board to enhance and streamline America's sprawling psychological warfare campaign against the USSR. As soon as the Board's staff began work on improving US psychological operations, they wondered how social science might help them achieve their task. Board Director, Gordon Gray, asked physicist turned research administrator Henry Loomis to do a full review of America's social science research program in support of psychological operations. Loomis willingly accepted the task. This paper documents Loomis's investigation into America's social science research program. It uncovers the critical role that government departments had in the creation of research in the early 1950s and thus highlights that the government official is an important actor in the history of social science and the application of social science to psychological operations at the beginning of the Cold War.

Military operational psychology.

With increasing requirements for expeditionary support to military units, models of integrated and embedded psychology have emerged. Operational psychology represents one such model. Military operational psychologists receive specialized training, are embedded in operational units, and are employed to provide operational mission support to organizations and their personnel as opposed to providing individual health care per se. The following article describes the employment of military operational psychology and discusses its unique organizational and ethical challenges. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Daily Life, Communication and Affections of Siblings and Parents of Military Service Members in Mission / Cotidiano, Comunicação e Afetos dos Irmãos e Progenitores dos Militares em Missão / Rutina, Comunicación y Afectos de los Hermanos y Padres de los Militares en Misión

Abstract The Portuguese military in mission state that parents and siblings are a fundamental support; however, research is very scarce in this area. This study aimed to investigate the impact of a mission on the daily life, communication and emotional responses of 227 relatives of 92 military personnel, 114 siblings (M age = 29.14, SD = 9.81) e 113 parents (M age = 55.06, SD = 9.12). A questionnaire related to the mission was applied, focusing on changes in the daily life, social support, communication and advice to other family members; and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule since receiving notification. The results revealed that the parents suffered more with the notification and that there were changes in family functioning and in the functional support. Communication with the deployed military service member strengthens family relationships, morale, and well-being. Participants reported emotions of concern and pride, and gave advice based on a positive attitude toward the military and the mission.

Resumo Os militares portugueses em missão costumam mencionar que pais e irmãos são um apoio fundamental, contudo a investigação é muito escassa nesta área. Este estudo teve como objetivo investigar o impacto de uma missão no cotidiano, comunicação e nas respostas emocionais de 227 familiares de 92 militares, 114 irmãos (M idade = 29.14, DP = 9.81) e 113 progenitores (M idade = 55.06, DP = 9.12). Aplicou-se um questionário relativo à missão, focando alterações do cotidiano, suporte social, comunicação e conselhos a outros familiares; e a Escala de Afetos Positivos e Negativos perante a notificação da mesma. Os resultados revelaram que os progenitores sofreram mais com a notificação e que existiram alterações no funcionamento familiar e no suporte funcional. A comunicação com o militar destacado fortalece as relações familiares, a moral e o bem-estar. Os participantes destacaram as emoções de preocupação e orgulho assim como conselhos pautados por uma atitude positiva face aos militares e à missão.

Resumen Los militares portugueses en misión mencionan que los padres y hermanos son un apoyo fundamental, pero la investigación es muy escasa en esta área. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo investigar el impacto de una misión en la vida cotidiana, la comunicación y las respuestas emocionales de 227 familiares de 92 militares, 114 hermanos (M edad = 29.14 SD = 9.81) y 113 padres (M edad = 55.06, SD = 9.12). Se aplicó un cuestionario de misión, centrado en los cambios diarios, el apoyo social, la comunicación y el asesoramiento a otros miembros de la familia; y la Escala de Afectos Positivos y Negativos tras la notificación. Los resultados revelaron que los padres sufrieron más con la notificación y que hubo cambios en el funcionamiento familiar y el apoyo funcional. La comunicación con el militar separado fortalece las relaciones familiares, la moral y el bienestar. Los participantes destacaron emociones de preocupación y orgullo, así como consejos basados en una actitud positiva hacia los militares y la misión.

A contribuição de Robert Yerkes para a engenharia humana como instrumento de dominação de classe: uma primeira aproximação / Robert Yerkes' contribution to human engineering as an instrument of class domination: a first approximation / La contribuición de Robert Mearns Yerkes para la ingeniería humana como instrumento de dominación de clase: una primera aproximación

O período de 1870 a 1920 é conhecido como aquele no qual diversos teóricos da psicologia estadunidense estabelecem as diretrizes teóricas e políticas da independência da disciplina frente às demais ciências e às reflexões filosóficas. A psicologia comparada proposta por Robert Mearns Yerkes é uma das mais importantes do final do século XIX e das duas primeiras décadas do século seguinte. As obras do autor referentes à evolução do sistema nervoso central e periférico e suas relações com a inteligência, em conjunto com a psicologia militar e a eugenia, possibilitam, ao menos em parte, a concretização da engenharia humana e de suas futuras aplicações em diversos setores da sociedade estadunidense como instrumento de dominação da classe dominante. Como se trata de uma obra vasta e variadas aplicações na vida cotidiana, pensamos que essa primeira aproximação seja aprofundada em futuras investigações acerca dos movimentos da classe trabalhadora durante o processo de modernização da indústria e da grande reforma social pela qual a sociedade estadunidense à época. Movimentos amplamente desprezados pela historiografia da psicologia estadunidense.(AU)

The period from 1870 to 1920 is known as the one in which several theorists of American psychology establish the theoretical and political guidelines of the discipline's independence from other sciences and philosophical domain. The comparative psychology proposed by Robert Mearns Yerkes is one of the most important of the late nineteenth century and the first two decades of the following century. The author's works on the evolution of the central and peripheral nervous system and its relations with intelligence, taken together with military psychology and eugenics, enable, at least in part, the concretization of human engineering and its future applications in various sectors of the American society as an instrument of domination of the ruling class. As it is a vast work and of varied applications in everyday life, we think that this first approximation will be deepened in future investigations about the movements of the working class during the process of modernization of the industry and of the great social reform by which the American society happened to the time. These movements were widely neglected by the historiography of American psychology.(AU)

El período de 1870 a 1920 es conocido como aquel en el cual diversos teóricos de la psicología estadounidense establecen las directrices teóricas y políticas de la independencia de la disciplina frente a las demás ciencias y reflexiones filosóficas. La psicología comparada propuesta por Robert Mearns Yerkes es una de las más importantes del fin del siglo XIX y de las dos primeras décadas del siglo siguiente. Las obras del autor referentes a la evolución del sistema nervioso central y periférico y sus relaciones con la inteligencia, en conjunto con la psicología militar y la eugenesia, posibilitan, al menos en parte, la concreción de la ingeniería humana y de sus futuras aplicaciones en diversos sectores de la sociedad estadounidense como instrumento de dominación de la clase dominante. Como se trata de una obra vasta y de variadas aplicaciones en la vida cotidiana, esperamos que esa primera aproximación sea profundizada en futuras investigaciones acerca de los movimientos de la clase trabajadora durante el proceso de modernización de la industria y de la gran reforma social por la que la sociedad estadounidense pasaba en esa época. Estos movimientos fueron ampliamente despreciados por la historiografía de la psicología estadounidense.(AU)

Suicide Typologies in the United States Air Force: A Hierarchical Cluster Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: This study describes characteristics of United States Air Force (USAF) suicide decedents and determines subgroups. METHOD: Retrospective review of demographic, psychiatric, event-related, and psychosocial variables for USAF suicide decedents in the Suicide Event Surveillance System database was conducted between February 1999 and July 2009 (N = 376). Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to determine initial clusters and cluster centroids. RESULTS: Analyses identified three clusters. Cluster 1 (n = 149) individuals were mostly single or divorced, E-1-E-6 rank, living alone, and less likely to have psychiatric disorder diagnoses or engage with most helping resources. Cluster 2 (n = 126) decedents were mostly married, living with a partner, higher ranking, and least likely to communicate suicide intent. Cluster 3 (n = 101) individuals were mostly E-4-E-6 rank, with the highest rates of most psychiatric diagnoses, previous suicide-related events, engagement with multiple helping resources, communication of intent, and psychosocial precipitants. Clusters differed significantly in marital status, rank, psychiatric diagnoses, precipitants, service utilization, previous suicide-related events, risk factors, communication of intent, location and method of death, and residential status. CONCLUSIONS: This study identifies empirically based suicide typologies within a military decedent sample. While further research and replications of findings are needed, these typologies have clinical and policy implications for military suicide prevention.

Military psychologists and cultural competence: exploring implications for the manifestation and treatment of psychological trauma in the British armed forces.

This paper considers the manifestation and treatment of psychological trauma in the military. The article describes how military psychologists conceptualise psychological trauma within the culture of the Armed Forces (AF), which is reflected in the process of acquiring what has been referred to as cultural competency. Psychologists in this context acquire an understanding of the manner in which the psychological and organisational systems and culture of the military affect the presentation of psychological trauma, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The paper outlines core psychological features of military life, including some of the ways in which the AF functions effectively as an adaptable fighting force. This highlights, for example, the potential for stigma within and between military personnel who experience mental health difficulties. The article proceeds to examine aspects of help-seeking in military mental healthcare, how symptoms can present at different stages in a deployment process, and the consequences that such problems can cause for military conduct and performance. Psychological care in the military is structured within an occupational mental health ethos, in which psychologists fulfil a range of clinical, organisational and leadership roles. These dynamics are explored with examples of care pathways and clarity on evidence-based interventions for trauma and PTSD in those experiencing military-related psychological injuries. Two vignettes are then offered to illustrate how some of these interventions can be used psychotherapeutically in addressing symptoms pertaining to hyperarousal, hypervigilance, guilt and shame.

Here, there and everywhere: psychologists and the training of British Army officers at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

The Department of Communication and Applied Behavioural Science is one of the three departments in the academic faculty at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The aim of the Department is to equip officer cadets with the skills, knowledge and personal qualities in order for them to develop their own potential, as both individuals and leaders in the British Army. The members of the Department have a range of backgrounds, with most having served in various capacities across UK Defence, both in uniformed and/or civilian crown servant contexts. Several members of the faculty are qualified psychologists, while others have related academic and professional backgrounds. The academic and applied discipline of psychology is the fundamental thread that runs through the various courses and projects delivered by the Department. This paper provides a brief overview of the activities undertaken by the Department, with a specific focus on the psychology components of the academic and applied activities. Although mainly serving in academic teaching roles, this paper illustrates the work of the psychologists outside the classroom, such as via field exercises and deployments overseas. It also touches on the importance of the outreach undertaken by the psychologists in the Department, which supports their ongoing research.

Male psychosexual therapy in the UK military.

Military personnel can experience psychosexual difficulties for a variety of reasons. Problems can arise because of psychological trauma, physical injury, consequences arising from pharmacological and surgical complications and social or emotional concerns relating to intrapersonal and interpersonal relationship dynamics. Such individuals might seek to minimise or avoid resolving their pertinent difficulties, while others can experience cultural, personal or organisational barriers to accessing professional help. This paper offers an overview of the development of a national specialist psychosexual therapy service (PST), commenting specifically on the service delivery for male military personnel. It will also consider factors which may support progress in treatment and reflect upon the importance of considering psychosexual functioning in relationships as part of the broader service-life context, which is especially relevant to military personnel.

Work-related stress indicator surveys in UK Ministry of Defence.

INTRODUCTION: UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy and strategy recommend the use of a 'Defence MODified' version of the Health and Safety Executive Management Standards Indicator Tool to help managers identify risks of work-related stress among Defence personnel. The Defence MODified Tool ('Stress Indicator Survey') asks personnel to rate their perceptions of eight working conditions known to be significantly associated with work-related stress. MOD psychologists are developing a Defence norm group against which future survey scores can be compared. This article describes the use of the Stress Indicator Survey in MOD and gives an overview of findings from 2016 to 2018. METHOD: MOD psychologists conducted 27 Stress Indicator Surveys in 2016-2018. Data were collated from 6227 personnel for the Defence norm group and comparisons were conducted between Service personnel and MOD civil servants, and between Services (Royal Navy/Royal Marines (RN/RM), Army and Royal Air Force (RAF)). RESULTS: Service personnel had significantly more favourable perceptions than MOD civil servants of most working conditions. The RN/RM had significantly more favourable perceptions than either the Army or the RAF of all working conditions. These findings indicate differential risks of work-related stress in different groups of personnel. DISCUSSION: Possible explanations for the observed differences in risk of work-related stress are discussed, including the nature of military life and planned changes to Defence civilian headcount. Examples of managerial actions to improve working conditions based on individual survey findings are given.

Psychology, risk, health and deployed military operations.

This article will focus on a study by the UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) which investigated the risk propensity and health behaviours of UK army personnel deployed to Iraq in 2007 as part of Op TELIC. The study addressed the concept of impulsive sensation seeking and how this interacted with health behaviours associated with alcohol, smoking, driving and sex at predeployment, during deployment and postdeployment, as well as perceptions of risk and psychological well-being. There is also a description of other deployment-related risk and health research and analysis undertaken by Dstl as part of a wider discussion on the nature of both risk and health on deployed operations.

Novel adaptations of mindfulness in the UK Armed Forces during peacetime.

Mindfulness approaches to promoting resilience and mental fitness within the UK Armed Forces have very recently emerged against a backdrop of studies from abroad, leading to a plethora of initiatives. These studies have used biological and cognitive markers of sustained attention and the human stress response, before and after training, in the period prior to deployment and made assertions of effectiveness on this basis. Progress has similarly been made in applying versions of mindfulness meditation to veteran patient groups with several difficult-to-treat conditions, to combat high dropout from services when little patient choice is offered. In short, a case has been made for offering mindfulness interventions as a further treatment option in combination with other approaches to maximise engagement with mental health services. Meanwhile, within the mindfulness literature more and more focus has been placed on ways to improve treatment fidelity and enhance teacher competency, and investment in teacher training is seen as essential for successful outcomes in any controlled trial.